Hotel Online  Special Report

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Lodging Unlimited Lands Contracts for
Two New Hotels in Upstate New York
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Morris Lasky�s Chicago-based firm chosen to open and manage
Cooperstown and Geneva properties scheduled to debut in June

Chicago � (Feb. 24, 2005) � Lodging Unlimited Inc., a Chicago-based full-service management company, has landed management contracts for two new hotels in upstate New York: the Howard Johnson Inn & Suites in Cooperstown and the Hampton Inn in Geneva.

Both hotels are under construction and scheduled to open in June. The Cooperstown Howard Johnson is owned by Northern Lights Land Company, LLC., led by Steven Okarski; the Geneva Hampton Inn is owned by a local group led by developer Chris Iversen. Both developers chose Lodging Unlimited to manage their hotels � but for different reasons.

�Chris also owns the Ramada Inn in Geneva, which opened eight years ago and was the newest hotel in the market until he decided to develop the new Geneva Hampton because he saw a need for more rooms in this growing market,� said Victor Nelson, Regional Operations Manager for Lodging Unlimited. �Chris chose Lodging Unlimited to manage the Ramada, and because he knows a great management company when he sees one, he also chose us to manage the new Hampton.�

It�s quite a different story for the Cooperstown Howard Johnson.

�The Cooperstown Howard Johnson is Steven Okarski�s first experience in the hotel business,� said Debra Webb, the Executive VP of Operations for Lodging Unlimited. �Steven really does his homework when he develops a project, and he selected Lodging Unlimited from among a number of management companies he looked at and evaluated.�

The 60-room Howard Johnson Inn & Suites in Cooperstown will cater to a huge leisure-travel market who come to the quaint village--located in the foothills of the Western Catskills--largely for one reason: to visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

�The property is located a few miles from the Doubleday Field where the major-league baseball Hall of Fame game is played, and about 400 feet from Cooperstown Dreams Park, which bills itself as �America�s First and Foremost Youth Baseball Experience�,� Webb said, noting that Cooperstown Dreams Park also is and home to the American Youth Baseball Hall of Fame Invitational Tournaments and hosts about 880 teams per summer which travel from around the country to test their skills in tournament play. 

�Because the hotel will be doing so much family business, it will feature Crayola-themed kids� suites, an indoor swimming pool, continental breakfasts and other family-themed amenities. The hotel also will cater to the corporate traveler with its Home Office rooms. The building will include a beautiful banquet room overlooking the evergreen trees and rolling hills. �

Like the Howard Johnson in Cooperstown, the 55-room, three-story Hampton Inn Geneva will cater to leisure travelers coming to visit New York�s Finger Lakes District and its surrounding wineries. However, it will also cater to a large market of business travelers.

�Both Chris Iversen and Lodging Unlimited saw a need for more new hotel rooms in Geneva because of the growth in both the corporate and leisure markets,� Nelson said. �The new Hampton is located just off the New York State Thruway, which puts it in an ideal location to attract business travelers from nearby Syracuse and Rochester, as well as vacationers in the summer tourism season.�

�We are proud that Lodging Unlimited Inc. is so well-respected in the hotel industry, as these two owners attest,� said Morris Lasky, a 40-year industry veteran who founded Lodging Unlimited and serves as its C.E.O. �We�re proud to expand our relationship with Chris Iversen, with whom we�ve worked for years, and we�re gratified that Steven Okarski chose Lodging Unlimited from among many competitors to manage his first venture in the hotel business. We think both of these new hotels will be highly successful in their respective markets, and we look forward to working with the owners, staff and franchisors to ensure that their guests have the kind of excellent hotel experience that�s always been our goal to deliver.�
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About Lodging Unlimited

Headed by 40-year hotel-industry veteran Morris Lasky, its founder and C.E.O, Chicago-based Lodging Unlimited has been providing management and consulting services to the hotel industry since its inception in 1970. With an emphasis on client satisfaction and bottom-line results, Lodging Unlimited has been involved in serving more than 200 lodging properties representing more than $5 billion in lodging real estate. Lodging Unlimited is known throughout the industry for consistently delivering numbers that are well above the national average. For more information on Lodging Unlimited, visit www.lodgingunlimited.com or call (312) 595 1390.

Lodging Unlimited West is the west coast affiliate of Lodging Unlimited Inc. that owns and operates Windmill Inns & Suites, a lodging enterprise with six locations, three each in Oregon and Arizona. John Cauvin, President and CEO of Windmill Inns of America, offers a 110% satisfaction guarantee at the properties. He stresses the philosophy that true hospitality is going the extra mile. For more information call 480-443-0909 or visit www.lu-west.com.


 
Contact:

Morris Lasky
President/CEO
Lodging Unlimited
Tel: (312) 595-1390
[email protected]

Barb Worcester, President
PRPRO
[email protected]
Tel: (440) 930-5770

Also See: Hotel Veteran Morris Lasky Conducts Streamlined Studies to Give Hoteliers Timely, In-depth Property Analysis / February 2005
Lasky, Cauvin Expanding Shared Management Philosophy Coast-to-Coast / July 2004
Produced By Hoteliers For Hoteliers, �Essentials Of Hotel Ownership� Conference Hailed By All Who Attend / June 2004
Lasky Launches �Lodging Unlimited West� At Hotel Ownership Conference In New York / April 2004
�Essentials Of Hotel Ownership� Event Proving To Be In Big Demand in Big Apple; Scheduled for April 23, 2004 at The Waldorf-Astoria Hotel / April 2004
Belmonte Appoints Lee Dushoff To Hospitality Solutions Team / February 2004
Belmonte To Bring Insight To Best Value Inn Members as Keynote at Conference / October 2003
Belmonte �Talks the Talk� in Role as Motivational Speaker / March 2003
Steve Belmonte Immersed in Sarbanes-Oxley as a New Member of the Board of Directors of Arlington Hospitality Inc. / May 2003
Belmonte�s Back In Business As Hospitalty Solutions LLC / Feb 2003


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