Central

ILLINOIS Chicago The 503-room Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare opened in Oct with over 55,000 sf of meeting space. Evanston The 81-year-old, 269-room Hotel Orrington reopened in Oct after a $32-million, 10-month renovation of all rooms and meeting space, and the addition of a new, 12,000-sf conference center.

KENTUCKY Fort Mitchell The 205-room Best Western Fort Mitchell opened in Nov. Louisville The Kentucky Exposition Center is undergoing a $52-million expansion to increase space by 40 percent by fall 2005.

LOUISIANA Shreveport The RiverView Park along the Red River opened in Sept with outdoor performance areas, a Rose Plaza of illuminated 35-foot-tall steel roses, a floating dock, and a 200-ft long water plaza with 105 programmable spray jets that will shoot water 12 feet into the air. Springfield The Hawthorn Suites Golf Resort at Carter Plantation opened in Oct, featuring 63 studio, 1- and 2-bedroom suites in 9 resort-like villas overlooking the new David Toms-designed golf course. Each villa holds 9 suites. There is also a Carter Plantation Pavilion with 30,000 sf of dining, meeting, and event space. In 2005, the Carter Plantation plans to add a full-service spa, fitness center, and outdoor pool.

MICHIGAN Dearborn This month, the 772-room Hyatt Regency Dearborn is expected to complete renovation of its Great Lakes Center meeting space, including new carpet, wall treatments, lighting and sound systems.