The hotel will be attached by a skywalk to the $375 million expansion of the UAB Hospital and Medical Facility, which is scheduled to open in July 2004.  �The hospital will be one of the largest and most comprehensive medical facilities in the South, serving more than 40,000 patients annually,� said Mitesh Shah, Noble Investment�s president and chief operating officer.  �In addition to serving the needs of the University and the hospital, the hotel is located in close proximity to the airport and will be a significant amenity for downtown Birmingham.  Birmingham boasts an impressive group of financial and corporate headquarters, and is the fourth largest banking center in the country. 

Noble Investment and the hotel will work closely with UAB to provide internship and scholarship opportunities, which is consistent with the company�s commitment to give back to the communities in which it invests and operates.  �We look forward to being a good neighbor here in Birmingham,� he said. 

�We are excited to be working with the Noble Investment Group to build a new hotel on the UAB campus,� said Richard Margison, UAB�s vice president of financial affairs and administration. �Noble's national reputation and experience in developing quality hotel properties was instrumental in our selecting them for this project. We have forged a close working relationship with members of their organization and look forward to the opening of this new facility as part of our continuing expansion of UAB's medical complex.�

The six-story building will have a street-front bistro restaurant located at the front of the hotel to serve hotel guests as well as the general public.  With 2,200 square feet of meeting space, the hotel will cater to corporate meetings, continuing education programs at UAB, medical seminars, as well as social events. 

Shah said that Noble Investment Group has an active growth pipeline, with several projects currently under development.  �The hotel industry is beginning to show signs of a rebound after three very difficult years,� he said.  �We are aggressively looking at opportunities in public/private development, as well as projects like the Courtyard by Marriott here in Birmingham where we can invest in thriving and dynamic communities.  We are developing in markets with high barriers to new competition and in locations that can act as a catalyst for other development in the immediate area.� 

Founded in 1979, Noble Investment Group is one of the nation�s foremost privately held, hotel ownership, management and development companies.  Noble currently owns and/or manages 21 hotels with 2,800, rooms together with 41 hotels with 6,044 rooms operated by Alliance Hospitality Management, a majority owned affiliate of Noble Investment Group.  Noble's development arm, Stormont Noble Development, and its predecessors have developed nearly $700 million in pre-eminent hospitality projects, representing close to 5,500 rooms and 300,000 square feet of convention and meeting space.  Noble has an active development pipeline in both the public and private sectors, is a strategic acquirer of hotels and also targets relationships in which the company can provide third-party hotel and conference center management.  Noble is a leading franchise partner of premium-branded hotels under the Marriott, Hilton, and InterContinental Hotels Group brands.