LAS VEGAS—Crystals at CityCenter has earned the VIVA “Best-of-the-Best” designation by the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), the global trade association of the shopping center industry. Crystals is one of only three 2012 VIVA (Vision, Innovation, Value and Achievement) award winners in the world.“The VIVA ‘Best-of-the-Best’ award honors and recognizes the most outstanding examples of shopping center design and development, sustainability, marketing, and community service worldwide,” ICSC said in a statement.“Crystals is an integral part of CityCenter and was created with a vision to bring a new level of environmental consciousness to the world-famous Las Vegas Strip,” said...

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZ.—Marriott International, Inc. announced the first hotel to open as part of its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environment) Volume Program—The Courtyard Scottsdale Salt River in Arizona. The hotel is also the first Marriott-branded property built on U.S. tribal land in cooperation with the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community, creating nearly 30 jobs.“This partnership is a symbol of Marriott’s commitment to working with diverse business partners,” said Eric Jacobs, chief development officer, North American Lodging, Marriott International. “Our business thrives on partnerships with organizations that share similar philosophies and values. We believe that we have found a great...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The early adopters of the Global Sustainable Tourism Council’s (GSTC) new Criteria for Destinations have been announced. They are Fjord Norway; Teton County, Wyoming; Mt. Huangshan, China; and St. Kitts & Nevis. This group of destinations will be the first to test and provide feedback on the Destination Criteria, which complement the GSTC’s existing Criteria for Hotels and Tour Operators. The GSTC Criteria for Destinations describe the minimum standards that a destination must reach in order to move toward social, cultural, and environmental sustainability—maintaining the cultural and natural attractions that tourists come to see, while benefitting the local...

TORONTO—Luxury hotel brand Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and Manchester Texas Financial Group LLC (MTFG) announce the signing of an agreement for Fairmont to manage a new city center hotel slated to open in 2015. The Fairmont Austin will be located directly east of the Austin Convention Center, at the northeast corner of Cesar Chavez and Red River Streets.The $350 million concept will be crafted by the project’s architect, Gensler Austin, to accommodate additional upscale features reflective of Fairmont’s luxury design and service aesthetics. For example, the planned number of rooms will likely be reduced from 1,035 to approximately 1,000—allowing...

YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CALIF.—Delaware North Companies (DNC) Parks & Resorts at Yosemite president Dan Jensen recently led a community event and ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the completion of a $1.15 million dollar eco-friendly remodel of the Village Store, which serves millions of park visitors annually. Attendees joining Jensen in the celebration included Yosemite National Park superintendent Don Neubacher, Tom Willey with T&D Willey Farms, Yosemite Valley students, Yosemite National Park visitors and community members. The event dedicated the newly refurbished store highlighting its 25 percent energy use reduction, sustainable design features and locally grown organic produce. This is...

PHOENIX—Best Western International is rolling out its “I Care Clean” program throughout 2012 that will bring advanced cleaning technologies used in hospitals, such as UV wands and black lights, to the more than 2,100 Best Western hotels in North America. As part of this I Care Clean program roll-out, housekeeping staff at Best Western hotels in North America will be empowered to exceed customer expectations in an entirely new way using several tools to clean guestrooms and common areas. The tools include:• Ultra violet (UV) sterilization wands. Wands from Purelight are used to sterilize “high touch points” in the...

STAMFORD, CONN.—In celebration of the brand’s sixth anniversary of Breathe Westin, Westin Hotels & Resorts announced that The Westin Paris—Vendôme is the latest addition to its growing global portfolio of smoke-free hotels. In January 2006, Westin became the first major hotel chain to introduce a brand-wide smoke-free policy across all its North America properties. The Westin Paris—Vendôme, which boasts impressive views of the Eiffel Tower and Louvre Museum, joins a host of international properties that have gone smoke free since the brand first introduced Breathe Westin six years ago. Westin continues to explore opportunities to introduce Breathe into new...

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In response to concerns raised by members, core LEED users and stakeholders, and in an effort to provide the marketplace a view of the full LEED program experience prior to ballot, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) announced that it will delay ballot on LEED 2012 until June 1, 2013 (or potentially earlier in 2013 if USGBC members and the market indicate readiness for ballot). Because of this date change, LEED 2012 is being renamed LEED v4. “LEED pushes the envelope to bring transformation to the market—that’s what we do,” said Scot Horst, senior vice president, LEED. “We...

LAKE GENEVA, WIS.—What if a hotel or building could install cogeneration with no investment, purchase electricity at a discount and reduce their carbon footprint? It may sound impossible, but the Green Leaf Inn in Delavan, Wis., has signed a 15 year Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with a third party owner-operator of cogeneration, or combined heat and power systems, providing the benefit of on-site cogeneration with no investment in equipment, and an electricity bill 20 percent below the local utility cost.The key benefit for the inn and any business is savings—both in energy cost and capital equipment. Similar to wanting...

SALT LAKE CITY—Utah’s largest rooftop solar powered electric system is now operational. The 1.65MW system atop the Calvin L. Rampton-Salt Palace Convention Center was turned on late last month by Salt Lake County and its project partners. It is one of the largest roof-top solar panel installations in the United States. The 600,000-square-foot system was assembled at the convention center and will provide 17 percent of its annual power needs. County Mayor Peter Corroon has set a goal of installing up to 10 megawatts of solar power on county-owned facilities. He is encouraging all sectors of the community to...