Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide continues to expand its Le Méridien hotel brand across the United States. In 2017 it will open Le Méridien Fort Lauderdale Airport in Dania Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Starwood announced this week.
Currently the Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Airport & Cruise Port Hotel, the property will undergo a $30 million renovation and brand conversion to become a Le Méridien. When it does, it will join several other Le Méridien hotels that have opened in the United States over the past 18 months, including properties in Charlotte, NC; Chicago; Columbus, OH; Indianapolis; New Orleans; and Tampa, FL.
"We are delighted to partner with Starwood to introduce Le Méridien in Fort Lauderdale, following the top-to-bottom transformation and repositioning of this ideally located hotel," said Charles S. Cohen, president and CEO of Cohen Brothers Realty Corp., the property's developer. "Le Méridien Fort Lauderdale Airport will help to meet rising demand for high-quality lodging within close proximity of the airport, Broward County Convention Center, and the downtown business district, and will also serve the growing need for meeting rooms and event facilities for tenants of our corporate center."
Le Méridien Fort Lauderdale Airport will have 245 guest rooms and suites, two redesigned restaurants, a revamped lobby, an expanded fitness center, a renovated outdoor pool, and 20,000 square feet of meeting space.
"Le Méridien Fort Lauderdale Airport will be the brand's second hotel in Florida, joining its growing North America portfolio," said Allison Reid, Starwood's senior vice president of North America development. "Le Méridien is a perfect brand for strategic conversions and adaptive re-use projects, which are driving the brand's growth in the region, allowing us to enter mature metropolitan markets more quickly."
Starwood acquired Le Méridien -- established in Paris in 1972 -- in 2005 and subsequently re-launched the French-born hotel brand around the themes of art and food. The brand has more than 100 properties in more than 40 countries.
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