San Francisco Hotel News & Labor Updates

Press Release Stanford Court Renaissance San Francisco Hotel July 18, 2011 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/07/16/prweb8645314.DTL After much ado, the California Street Cable Car Line is back climbing the famous San Francisco hills. Running directly outside the doors of the Renaissance Stanford Court, a boutique San Francisco Hotel, the California Cable Car Line will now stop at this San Francisco hotel and whisk guests all about the city. To celebrate the completion of the California Street Line, The Stanford Court Hotel is offering the ultimate sip, savor and see experience to California Street Line riders. As part of the sip, savor and see experience, riders who present their Cable Car ticket at Aurea, the on-site restaurant at the Stanford Court Hotel in Nob Hill, can enjoy a complimentary Summer Thyme cocktail, house made potato chips served with two dips-one savory and one sweet-and a San Francisco City Navigator tailored to the California Line. The San Francisco City Navigator reveals popular and potentially unlooked attractions to guests at this San Francisco, CA hotel. Ideal for both the visiting tourist and the native San Franciscan, this celebratory promotion toasts to the future of the iconic San Francisco cable cars. This offer is valid throughout the month of July to celebrate the completion of the California Cable Car line and is restricted to one experience per cable car ticket.* *Tax is additional. Offer cannot be combined with any other promotions. Other restrictions apply. The California Street Cable Cars have been an icon of San Francisco for a long time. While they are historic and offer a memorable experience, the street cable cars are also an ideal way to explore San Francisco. Guests staying at this San Francisco, California, hotel can easily navigate some of the most popular destinations in the city. For more information, please visit www.aureasf.com or call 415-989-3500. About the Stanford Court Renaissance San Francisco Hotel A luxury, AAA Four-Diamond boutique hotel in the heart of San Francisco, The Stanford Court Renaissance San Francisco Hotel provides a sophisticated, contemporary urban retreat. The spacious, recently restored historic hotel features upscale accommodations in downtown San Francisco with 367 guest rooms and 26 luxurious suites on 8 floors, as well as 16 meeting rooms with 13,000 sq. ft. of total meeting space. Located on Nob Hill, near Cable Cars, Union Square and the Financial District, the hotel also features a full-service business center, fitness center, spacious floor plans and all-new rooms. The spacious guest rooms feature luxury bedding, 37″ LCD TVs, marble bathrooms, in-desk safes and wired & wireless high-speed Internet access. For more information, please visit www.stanfordcourt.com. [...]

The Seattle Times July 12, 2011 http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2015580659_hoteltax12m.html Downtown Seattle hotel owners want to add a $2-per-night room tax to fund advertising that would promote leisure travel to Seattle, particularly in the offseason. Cuts in government funding — including the closure of the state tourism office — and a rash of “staycations” prompted hotel owners to seek the fee, which was expected to be announced Tuesday morning. More than three-quarters of hotels that would be included already have signed petitions expressing support. The Seattle City Council could vote on the tourism-improvement district this summer. The fee would apply to 53 hotels downtown and in Belltown, South Lake Union, the Chinatown International District, Pioneer Square and part of Capitol Hill. Hotels with fewer than 60 rooms would be exempt. The $2 fee would be on top of the 15.6 percent tax Seattle hotel guests already pay in sales taxes and a room tax. The 7 percent room tax goes toward paying off debt on the Washington State Convention Center and advertising the city as a business-convention site. The new fee would raise about $5 million to $6 million in 2012 to fund promotion, supporters say. “Hotel stays, especially leisure business, is all discretionary, so that takes the biggest hit,” said Howard Cohen, president of the Seattle Hotel Association. While hit by a decline in visitors because of the economic downturn, hotels locally also have seen a drop in Japanese tourists after their nation’s March earthquake and in visitors from the South and Midwest after tornadoes there, said Cohen, who manages two Best Western hotels near the Space Needle and the Sixth Avenue Inn. “This industry is huge for Seattle,” said City Councilmember Tim Burgess. Government funding for tourism promotion has been slashed in recent years. The state’s elimination of the Washington State Tourism Office makes Washington the only state in the country not to spend money promoting tourism. Seattle donated $50,000 this year to Seattle’s Convention and Visitors Bureau for promotion, but that money is expected to be cut from the city budget next year. “I think traditional sources of funding tourism in many cities and many states is changing dramatically,” said Tom Norwalk, president and CEO of the visitors bureau. “We’re really using something that’s been adopted widely around the country.” The new fee would make Seattle’s taxes and fees on hotel rooms among the highest on the West Coast, according to 2009 data from the National Business Travel Association. In San Diego and Portland, for example, hotel guests pay 12.5 percent. In San Francisco, they pay 15.5 percent. A City Council analysis showed for a $150 room, guests would pay 16.6 percent with the new fee. Mayor Mike McGinn said he supports the fee in part because the industry is offering to tax itself. “They see the value in the ability to promote Seattle as a destination,” he said. The new money would market Seattle as an offseason destination. A committee would determine how to spend the money. Tourism is not a problem during summer months, said Norwalk. The new marketing would advertise the city’s food and wine scene, cultural events, holiday shows and activities like that, he said. “We have many, many cultural activities,” said City Councilmember Jean Godden. “We were having Picasso last winter … We don’t have harsh winters. Sometimes we have a little bit of rain, but it’s usually misty and light and not gullywashers by any means.” Seattle’s tourism industry is on the rebound after a low point in 2009. In 2010, 9.3 million overnight visitors booked hotel rooms in King County, versus 8.8 million in 2009. Visitor-generated state and local tax revenue was up 8.4 percent in the county in 2010, as well, according to the Convention and Visitors Bureau. [...]

Press Release – Grand Hyatt San Francisco July 8, 2011 http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2011/07/07/prweb8625467.DTL Grand Hyatt San Francisco, an iconic hotel located in the heart of San Francisco’s Union Square, announces an extensive $70 million, multi-phase transformation. With completion anticipated for fall 2012, the substantial project will re-establish the landmark hotel as a world-class property, with 659 newly appointed, tech-forward guestrooms and suites, and a redesigned Grand Club®, lobby, open kitchen concept restaurant and lounge, and upgraded meeting facilities. “With our unparalleled location in the heart of vibrant Union Square, Grand Hyatt San Francisco has been a time-honored favorite for visitors to the city by the bay for more than 42 years, offering limitless access to world-class shopping, historic landmarks and attractions, and premier dining and entertainment,” said David Nadelman, general manager of Grand Hyatt San Francisco. “Our exciting renovation will reveal a sophisticated and luxurious new product, providing guests the very best in style, comfort and technology.” Elegant Guestroom Renovations – The hotel recently completed the renovation of all 630 guestrooms and corridors including 21 Respire hypo-allergenic rooms designed to provide a comfortable sleeping environment for all guests, especially allergy sufferers. The new residential-style guestrooms feature ergonomic and spacious workstations, custom woodwork and spa-like glass and tile bathrooms. Rooms also have the latest in wired and wireless technology, including Uno-Bitell phones that double as alarm clocks and iPod® players, and 37″ LCD flat screen HDTVs that can be watched from all areas of the rooms. Connected to the televisions are jack packs, all-in-one multimedia hubs that easily pair the television with laptops or DVD players. Smart door locks “talk” to the thermostat and in-room safe, creating a wireless network, which helps the hotel monitor energy use and notify guests if items are left in the safe upon check-out. Floor-to-ceiling windows create sweeping views of the city and bay, while electronic blackout shades ensure a great night’s sleep. New Grand Club®, Suites, and Meeting Space – Slated for completion in Aug. 2011, the renovation of Grand Hyatt San Francisco’s Grand Club® will provide new, exclusive and sophisticated amenities for members of the elite Diamond tier of Hyatt Gold Passport, Hyatt’s global loyalty program, as well as guests staying in Grand Club® rooms. In addition, the hotel’s 29 spacious suites will be completely updated to include hardwood floors, residential style furniture and fixtures, and the latest high-tech enhancements. The hotel will offer a variety of suites designed to fit a broad range of entertainment and business needs. The renovation of Grand Hyatt San Francisco’s meeting space will also be completed in Aug. 2011. The transformed space will include the creation of the hotel’s Grand Foyer, 5,700 square-feet of flexible meeting space. The renovated Grand Foyer will be a highly-adaptable meeting and event space that can accommodate both large and small groups. Renovations in 2012 – Additional improvements to Grand Hyatt San Francisco, expected to begin in early 2012, will include the redesign of the front drive and lobby, the introduction of a new open kitchen concept restaurant and upscale bar, and the exciting repositioning of Grandviews Restaurant and Lounge. For more information about Grand Hyatt San Francisco, please visit the hotel online at www.grandsanfrancisco.hyatt.com or call (415) 398-1234. About Grand Hyatt San Francisco – Sophistication on a Grand Level With an unparalleled location in the heart of the vibrant metropolis of San Francisco, Grand Hyatt San Francisco offers luxurious accommodations, authentic hospitality and limitless access to the City by the Bay’s world-class shopping, historic landmarks, attractions, premier dining and entertainment. Ideal for business and leisure travelers alike, Grand Hyatt San Francisco features 659 guestrooms, including 29 suites, Respire hypo-allergenic rooms, a private Grand Club, expert Les Clef d’Or Concierge staff, a state-of-the-art Stay Fit health club, sophisticated dining with spectacular panoramic views, as well as award winning business facilities with 25,000 square-feet of flexible function space, plus San Francisco’s only conference theatre. For more information regarding Grand Hyatt San Francisco, please contact the hotel by phone at 415.398.1234 or visit the hotel website: www.grandsanfrancisco.hyatt.com [...]