InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG) and Lane Hospitality have opened a 198-room Crowne Plaza prototype in Milwaukee, Wisconsin with ”efficient design features” important to upscale business travellers.
The two companies have aimed to create a prototype that is operationally efficient and cost effective for owners, suitable as a new-build in emerging markets.
”Our collaboration with Lane Hospitality has resulted in a brand-defining product that will appeal to current and future Crowne Plaza franchisees looking to develop new-build hotels,” said Crowne Plaza Hotels and Resorts brand management vice president, Gina LaBarre.
IHG says the Crowne Plaza Milwaukee-Wauwatosa”s design is ”scalable and versatile enough” to suit a variety of locations, including airports.
Its research highlighted how today”s corporate traveller likes to meet and conduct business on the road, while guests also desire the flexibility and control to work in all areas of the hotel, both formally and informally.
Customer feedback influenced the design - an example of this is the lobby area and lounge, which contains soft seating with adjacent hard surfaces, power sources and Wi-Fi so that guests can accommodate small, informal meetings and individuals can work outside their rooms.
In addition, the hotel”s 7000 sq ft (650 sq m) of meeting space is designed to include: movable partitions/walls to create a variety of flexible function space; multi-zone, controllable lighting; backlit projection screens and Wi-Fi access. Meeting space is also apart from the busier areas of the hotel, providing a business environment free of distractions.
There are two executive floors, plus a 24-hour business centre and a fitness centre.
”We look forward to providing an outstanding guest experience, and to the many new business opportunities that this innovative complex will bring to Wauwatosa,” said Lane Hospitality president and CEO, Bill DeForrest.
There are a further ten properties in the Crowne Plaza pipeline that will incorporate elements of this new prototype in US cities including Raleigh-Durham, Baltimore and Ft. Lauderdale.