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Partners Hold Groundbreaking for the 1,190 room Hilton San Diego Convention Center |
| SAN DIEGO � January 27, 2006 � Hilton Hotels Corporation announced
today the groundbreaking of the Hilton San Diego Convention Center, a 30-story,
1,190-room hotel on the edge of the San Diego Bay that will connect directly
with the San Diego Convention Center. Hilton Hotels Corporation has formed
a joint venture with ING Clarion Partners, a leading real estate investment
advisory firm to own and operate the hotel. The project is being co-developed
by Portman Holdings and Phelps Development and is designed by John Portman
& Associates. Hensel Phelps Construction Co. will build the hotel.
Completion and opening is scheduled for late 2008.
�We are thrilled to be able to announce the groundbreaking of this important project,� said Ernest Wooden, Jr., senior vice president, Hilton/Doubletree Western Region, Hilton Hotels Corporation. �With an idyllic waterfront location, upscale Hilton amenities and a variety of leisure and dining opportunities in the hotel and surrounding neighborhood, the Hilton San Diego Convention Center will help boost San Diego�s status as a prime destination for national conventions.� The joint venture is expected to invest approximately $350 million into
the development, with San Diego National Bank providing the construction
financing. The land for the project has been leased from the Port of San
Diego, which has invested substantial capital in environmental remediation.
In addition, the Port of San Diego has constructed a 2,000-space parking
structure that will accommodate the needs of hotel guests as well as other
visitors.
The primary design theme of the new Hilton San Diego Convention Center is to complement San Diego�s scenic beauty and superb climate by maximizing water views and open spaces. When complete, the hotel will consist of a 30-story tower situated on a podium base, with the entrance to the hotel elevated to provide optimum views of San Diego Bay from the main lobby and meeting areas and to allow restaurant and retail guests and customers direct pedestrian access to the waterfront, the waterfront park, the convention center and PETCO Park. The new hotel will also maintain a view corridor that will run along Park Boulevard from San Diego Bay to Balboa Park. The hotel will have more than one million square feet of interior space, including 1,190 guestrooms; four food and beverage outlets (including a waterfront restaurant); 165,000 square feet of interior meeting, a grand ballroom and a junior ballroom and pre-function lobby space, plus 32 meeting rooms and a conference center; a 7,300-square foot health club and spa; 3,000 square feet of retail space and a 2,400 square foot business center. Located on the site of the former Campbell Shipyard, the development will also include a 4.3 acre exterior waterfront park. �This project continues the revitalization of a very important part of the San Diego waterfront and central business district area,� said Michael McCann, senior vice president at ING Clarion. �The new hotel and the surrounding grounds will provide first-class accommodations to Convention Center guests and to the City of San Diego. We are delighted to have the opportunity to participate.� The Hilton San Diego Convention Center will be located at One Park Boulevard at the intersection of Harbor Drive and Eighth Avenue. About ING Clarion
The firm is the U.S. investment management arm of ING Real Estate an international real estate company, active in real estate investment management, development and finance. The company ranks among the world�s strongest real estate players with offices in fifteen countries in Europe, the United States, Asia and Australia. ING Real Estate is part of ING Group, a global financial institution of Dutch origin offering banking, insurance and asset management to over 60 million private, corporate and institutional clients in more than 50 countries. With a diverse workforce of about 114,000 people, ING comprises a broad spectrum of prominent companies that increasingly serve their clients under the ING brand. More information about the firm is available at www.ingclarion.com. About Hilton Hotels Corporation
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| Contact:
Jeanne Datz Rice
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