E-Mail Express

Name:

Company:

E-mail:

Phone:

West County tourism looks to attract business travelers

OTHER EXPANSIONS AND UPDATES PART OF 1,000 NEW ROOMS APPROVED THIS YEAR

SONOMA COUNTY – Developers of three West County hospitality projects, including a 120-room hotel and conference space, hope to attract new business tourism to the area. Overall more than 1,000 new rooms have been approved by the county this year.

“The whole basis of a healthy tourism business is the ability to book meetings, and that is something that has long been missing in [West County],” said Ken Fischang, chief executive officer of the Sonoma County Tourism Bureau. “Business travelers book six months to three years in advance and usually travel during non-peak seasons and on week days. … It’s like having a savings account of room nights.”

After 10 years in dormancy, the revived Guernewood Park Hotel will be a key piece to bringing meetings and conference-based travelers to the Russian River and coastal region. Local developer Kirk Lok bought the 10-acre parcel with plans to build a large hotel but was stalled after friction with locals over the plan.

But with a scaled-down project, extensive environmental considerations and several community group presentations, the Lok Group of Companies president said he is confident the project will be met with optimism at its first design review later this month.

“Our whole strategy is to create a demand for business travel in this area,” Mr. Lok said. “If you look at the history of the location, San Francisco has for generations found recreation in the Russian River region. But we want to expand on that desire to find recreation to business customers, whether it be just meetings or more incentive travel as a reward to employees.”

The hotel will be organized into 12 buildings that Mr. Lok said will be close to invisible from the neighboring scenic Highway 116. Two large, four-story buildings cloaked in redwoods will house 100 hotel rooms alongside ten, two-story bungalows. The smaller buildings will each have two, one-bedroom apartments with kitchenettes.

Solar panels will line the roof of the main hotel building, and about $200,000 in civil engineering designs will help divert man-made pollutants from the river. Mr. Lok also said about 90 percent of the property’s redwoods will be preserved.

“What we wanted to do was create a design that reflects the historical nature of the property but also responds to the environmental sensitivity of the land,” he said.

Two existing coastal properties are also expected to bring new business travel with a huge expansion to one and rejuvenation of the other. “I think these two projects will give the north corner of the county a whole new look. It will really rejuvenate the area,” said Mr. Fischang.

Constructed in the early 1960s, the Sea Ranch Lodge on the northern edge of the county is in preparations to more than triple in size, moving from 20 rooms to about 60. Built as one of the first eco-villages, the property’s green features will be preserved, said the developer.

Just down Highway 1, the equally historic 50-room Timber Cove Inn will get a facelift after seasoned hotel developer R.D. Olson Development purchased the property last month. The hotel is now managed by Pacifica Hotel Co., which will help update the facility during the next few months.

The property includes 22 acres of forest and seaside trails as well as a fine dining restaurant, bar and fireplaces in most rooms. The changes will include new carpets, drapes, bedding, furniture and other cosmetic finishes as well as a new menu with local produce and fresh-caught seafood.

In total, Sonoma County has approved more than 1,000 new rooms for construction, and several existing hotels have completed or will complete millions of dollars in renovations.

The Vintners’ Inn in Santa Rosa is continuing with its growth plan. It recently completed an events center and will soon begin plans to add about 20 more rooms and a 3,000- to 5,000-square-foot spa.

The rooms will be situated in two-bedroom, “casita”-type buildings, closer to the vineyard. General Manager Percy Brandon said the hotel hopes to begin construction by summer 2009 and will also add a pool and expanded vegetable gardens.

Other existing hotels made significant renovation investments this year, including the Flamingo Conference Resort & Spa and the Fountaingrove Inn. Together the two hotels spent more than $8 million modernizing the facilities.