Pittsburgh Hotels Revamp To Attract Business Guests
<I>Pittsburgh </I>- To maintain their competitive edges in a city that hosts several Fortune 500 companies, a number of downtown business hotels have undergone extensive work in an effort to capture a greater share of corporate travelers.
One downtown hotel, the former Hyatt Regency, reopened in July as the Pittsburgh Marriott City Center after a $9 million renovation of its 400 guest rooms and a redesign of 24,000 square feet of banquet and meeting space.
"With 240 of our guest rooms outfitted with Marriott's Room That Works, a concept for business travelers that includes larger desks, ergonomic chairs, computer hookups and task lighting, this hotel is definitely geared toward accommodating corporate business travelers, the largest segment of our market," said Thomas Martini, the hotel's new director of sales. "To date, that segment has grown 8 percent over the last year."
The property also features 120 concierge rooms that allow guests access to the concierge Pittsburgh lounge, featuring complimentary breakfast, personal meeting rooms and a kitchen.
In addition, the hotel offers shuttle van service for business guests to downtown addresses, and access to recreational facilities that include a 40-foot heated swimming pool and a health club with sauna.
Another downtown hotel, the 717-room Pittsburgh Hilton and Towers, has topped off a four-year, $22 million renovation project with a new lobby and refurbishment of its luxury suites. Next year will see the installation of second telephone lines in each guest room.
"This work will permit us to offer even greater service to corporate and business travelers by allowing a modem hookup for laptop computers, and simultaneous access to incoming and outgoing phone calls," said director of sales and marketing Patrick Cook.
The hotel's Executive Center is outfitted with five boardrooms, telephones, audiovisual equipment, copy machines, personal computers and secretarial services. Additionally, all rooms in the Towers portion of the hotel-Hilton's signature luxury hotel within a hotel-offer fax machines and VCRs.
"Location, being downtown close to offices and within walking distance of many business addresses is a key factor in why corporate travelers choose one hotel over another in Pittsburgh," Cook said. So far this year, the hotel's number of business travelers has increased 10 percent over the same period last year, he said.
Meanwhile, the Ramada Plaza Suites has invested $3 million in renovations and upgrades. "With an all-suites hotel, the only one downtown, we can offer corporate travelers good value for their money," said director of sales Lois Sanctis. Amenities include a free newspaper, kitchenettes, cable TV and telephones with voicemail.
Changes at the hotel this year include electronic key cards for guest rooms and a new 18,000-square-foot meeting center. A full-service business center is planned for the immediate future.
Pittsburgh has a very strong transient market, with numerous corporate headquarters in the area such as Westinghouse, Pittsburgh Plate Glass, Mellon Bank, Heinz, Alcoa and Consolidated Natural Gas. "These bring a very steady volume of business travelers into the region," Cook said. "If a hotel is not prepared to accommodate their needs, its competition will."
Because Pittsburgh has a lower occupancy rate than the nation's larger cities-67.2 percent in 1995-lodging suppliers need to work a bit harder to accommodate the corporate market.
"The pie just isn't as big as it is in some larger cities, so quality of service and overall hotel amenities become a little more important and a lot more noticeable," said Marriott's Martini.
"Pittsburgh is finally more than a steel town," said Sanctis of Ramada Plaza Suites. "The city's high-tech industries and other corporations, hospitals, and universities are attracting an ever-increasing number of business travelers.