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News & Features

Whether an industry announcement, or a hotel accomplishment, Green Lodging News reports on the most up-to-date news and offers a unique perspective on trends—all with the purpose of making your company more profitable. Got news or a story idea to share? We frequently post contributed articles here. Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

News & Features

Home News & Features
Whether an industry announcement, or a hotel accomplishment, Green Lodging News reports on the most up-to-date news and offers a unique perspective on trends—all with the purpose of making your company more profitable. Got news or a story idea to share? We frequently post contributed articles here. Contact Glenn Hasek, editor, at (813) 510-3868, or by e-mail at: greenlodgingnews@gmail.com.

PKF: Green Building, Operations Favorably Impact Asset Value

SAN FRANCISCO—Investing in renovations that make hotels more sustainable will increase their value, slash operating costs and attract customers who are trending toward more sustainable hospitality experiences, PKF Capital managing partner Henry Bose told a conference here on green hotels. “For every dollar you can add to the bottom line of a San Francisco hotel, more than $11 is added in value,” Bose says. Bose said that so far there are too few hotels that have earned the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED certification to compare their financial performance against traditional hotels. But he indicated that his firm, in conjunction with...

Fairmont Dallas Pyramid Restaurant Reopens With Fresh-Market Approach

DALLAS—The Fairmont Dallas has unveiled the new Pyramid Restaurant & Bar. It features contemporary décor and new organic, sustainable menus created by Executive Chef j.W. Foster. The new Pyramid, at more than 7,000 square feet, resonates with a modern, sleek, contemporary look evoking a stylish vigor and energy. The look and feel are imaginative and engaging and feature a color palette in rich tones of celadon, taupe, gold, and moss with accents of polished bronze, walnut and mahogany against a backdrop of earth-toned wall coverings and dark mahogany flooring. Since his arrival in Dallas last year from his native Canada,...

New InterContinental Chicago O’Hare Utilizes 100 Percent Renewable Energy

ROSEMONT, ILL.—Chicagoland’s new eco-savvy and luxury destination hotel, the 556-room InterContinental Chicago O’Hare, is going above and beyond in its quest to lighten businesses’ impact on the environment. Not only does the sophisticated, design-forward property utilize 100 percent renewable energy credits from wind, but the InterContinental Chicago O’Hare also features a green roof, recycles all materials used throughout its hotel and convention area, and helps businesses and organizations support sustainability with its “Green Meetings” program. “The InterContinental Chicago O’Hare is dedicated to significantly lessening our carbon footprint on the earth, as well as raising awareness in our community about...

Wyndham Hotels Introduce ‘Green’ Uniforms Spun From Plastic

PARSIPPANY, N.J.—As part of its evolving “green” strategy, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts announced the launch of a new ecologically-friendly uniform line for hotel staff using recycled polyester fibers spun from plastic beverage bottles. Select Wyndham hotels will introduce the new uniforms beginning this fall by job category. Front desk and other customer-facing employees are required to begin wearing the new uniforms by the end of 2009 and housekeeping and other back-of-house staff by 2010. All new properties are required to provide the new uniforms upon opening. The textiles are produced from post-consumer products, including recycled plastic beverage bottles, which...

Westin Le Paradis Beach & Golf Resort Will Rely on Renewable Fuel Sources

PRASLIN BAY, ST. LUCIA—The Westin Le Paradis Beach & Golf Resort, St. Lucia is aiming to be the Caribbean’s first fossil fuel independent resort when it opens in June 2009. The 554-acre resort is being developed with special consideration to social and environmental impacts, with the goal of improving the community in St. Lucia. Situated along the island’s east coast, The Westin Le Paradis Beach & Golf Resort, St. Lucia will feature 192 rooms, as well as an 18-hole Greg Norman Signature Golf Course and the Westin brand’s full range of services and amenities. “Protecting and preserving the local environment...

NEWH Sustainability Leadership Forum Identified Top Green Design Trends

NEW YORK—The Network of Executive Women in Hospitality, Inc. (NEWH), a nonprofit network providing scholarships, education, and leadership opportunities for individuals in the hospitality industry, recently gathered leaders from across the hospitality industry to discuss and debate the top trends in green and sustainable design in its second leadership forum. The Sustainable Hospitality Leadership Forum was designed to spark creative ideas and strategies for how hospitality and design experts can incorporate environmentally-sensitive practices, while maintaining a luxury experience for guests. Moderated by Jeanne Varney, vice president, Host Hotels and Resorts, forum participants included some of the hospitality industry’s biggest...

Sage Hospitality’s The Nines Hotel Prepares to Open in Portland, Ore.

PORTLAND, ORE.—Sage Hospitality, a hospitality development and management company, announced that the famed Meier & Frank building in the heart of downtown Portland will reopen this fall as the Nines, a Starwood Luxury Collection Hotel. Once the store where Portland residents shopped when they needed to dress “to the nines,” the hotel ushers in a new level of style and eco-luxury on the top nine floors of this historic building on Pioneer Square. “The building has been completely recreated, blending the legacy of its architectural heritage with a world-class hotel,” said Walter Isenberg, president and CEO of Sage Hospitality, the...

Willard is First Hotel to Release GRI Standard Sustainability Report

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Willard InterContinental Hotel here has released its first Sustainability Report. The report examines the Willard’s environmental and social performance, with comparisons of the progress of its sustainable development initiatives, started in 2005 as “Willard InterContinental, The Next 100 Years”. Based on its Triple Bottom Line strategy of Economic Prosperity, Social Responsibility and Environmental Protection, the report highlights the hotel’s strategy as well as its results. The report adheres to the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), an internationally recognized standard for sustainability reporting. Encouraged by the direction of InterContinental’s commitment to corporate responsibility, the Willard sought out Washington, D.C.-based...

Registration Open for USGBC’s Annual Greenbuild Conference

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) annual conference and exhibition will be held from November 19 to 21 in Boston. Greenbuild is the world’s largest conference and expo dedicated to green building, and is the recent recipient of Tradeshow Week’s “Fastest 50,” honoring the 50 fastest growing shows in North America. This year, more than 25,000 attendees will attend, eager to learn more about LEED green building certification, the nationally accepted system for green buildings, developed by USGBC as a tool to build healthy, energy-efficient, resource-friendly structures. This year’s show will explore “Revolutionary Green: Innovations for Global...

Doubletree Fallsview Earns Three Green Key Eco-Rating from HAC

NIAGARA FALLS, ONT.—The Doubletree Fallsview Resort & Spa by Hilton-Niagara Falls announced that it has earned a Three Green Key Eco-Rating from the Hotel Association of Canada (HAC). The Green Key Eco-Rating Program is a voluntary program designed to recognize hotels that have taken significant steps towards sustainability through participation in environmental programs, best management practices, training programs, and engineering solutions which have benefited the environment and the local community. The Green Key Eco-Rating Program, which is entirely voluntary for hotels, consists of a questionnaire with approximately 140 questions related to various areas of sustainable hotel operations. Each question has...