Hyatt Hotels Corporation has announced that a Hyatt affiliate has signed a management agreement with an affiliate of Island Hospitality Partners, LLC for Hyatt Place Bayamón and El Tropical Casino. It will be the first Hyatt-branded select service hotel in Puerto Rico and, upon opening, will mark the return of Hyatt-branded hotels to Puerto Rico after a nine year absence.

“A Hyatt Place presence in the Caribbean is integral to the brand’s expansion.”

Hyatt Place Bayamón and El Tropical Casino, expected to open in the first quarter of 2014, will be a seven story building offering 156 guestrooms with an adjoining casino, free-standing restaurant and bar, and a multi-level parking garage with space for 250 vehicles. The hotel will be located next to the 42-acre Luis A. Ferré Science Park and will also be close to the city’s largest shopping mall. Bayamón is the island’s second most populous city and is located 15 miles southwest of San Juan.

“We are excited to introduce the Hyatt Place brand to Puerto Rico,” said Chris Ivy, senior vice president, real estate and development – North America and Caribbean, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts. “A Hyatt Place presence in the Caribbean is integral to the brand’s expansion.” Currently, there are more than 160 Hyatt Place hotels in operation in the United States, with more than 35 under development throughout the U.S., Europe, the Caribbean, China, Latin America, Southwest Asia, and the Middle East.

Facilities and amenities of Hyatt Place Bayamón and El Tropical Casinowill include the Gallery lobby/lounge with 24-hour Guest Kitchen, dining areas offering indoor seating for 80 guests and outdoor seating for 12 guests on the veranda. Other amenities will include 2,075 square feet of flexible meeting space, a fitness center, outdoor swimming pool, and free Wi-Fi everywhere in the hotel.

“We are excited to work with Hyatt on this project and to bring Hyatt’s world-class hospitality and the innovative Hyatt Place brand to Puerto Rico,” said Federico Stubbe, Jr., of Island Hospitality Partners, LLC.

Launched in 2006, Hyatt Place brings to the upscale select-service hotel category the authentic hospitality for which Hyatt is known. Inspired by multitasking travelers’ 24/7 lifestyle, Hyatt Place combines stylish design and practical amenities with forward-thinking technology and purposeful service. Hyatt Place hotels feature complimentary Wi-Fi access and remote printing, a 24-hour StayFit@Hyatt fitness center, a coffee and wine bar serving specialty coffees and premium wine, beer, and spirits, complimentary a.m. Kitchen Skillet™, featuring freshly prepared breakfast sandwiches and a Grab ‘n Go case stocked with sandwiches and hand tossed salads. The Guest Kitchen offers lunch and dinner entrées 24/7. Specially trained Gallery Hosts offer assistance with everything from directions to check-in to a freshly made meal. Spacious guestrooms are designed to help guests perfectly blend their lifestyle of work and play, featuring the Hyatt Grand Bed™, Cozy Corner sofa sleeper, work center, 42 inch HDTVs and the Hyatt Plug Panel media center.

About Island Hospitality Partners

PRISA Group (“PRISA”), McConnell Valdés Consulting, Inc. (“McVC”) and HI Development Corp. (“HI”) have combined their expertise and resources in the planning, development, construction and operation of hospitality, residential and mixed used projects to form Island Hospitality Partners, LLC, creating a strong team capable of executing all necessary tasks for the successful development of the project from conception to operation.

PRISA is a family-owned developer and builder of green residential communities and resort hospitality projects in Puerto Rico and Florida with over 6,000 units in planning and construction, representing a value of over $3 billion. The firm has delivered over 3,000 units in the last 20 years and currently develops projects in Dorado, Vega Alta, Gurabo, San Lorenzo, and Humacao, Puerto Rico, as well as in Tampa, Florida. PRISA Group has received numerous awards, including Builder Member of the Decade and three Master Planned Community of the Year Awards by the National Association of Home Builders Puerto Rico Chapter, as well as the highest honor bestowed upon a Puerto Rico developer, the Frank Ramirez de Arellano Award. PRISA Group also founded one of the most esteemed private schools on the Island, TASIS Dorado, which hosts over 700 students in grades PPK – 12^th.

PRISA Group is currently developing the $390 million Dorado Beach, a Ritz Carlton Reserve, the first in the Americas, presently under construction and opening December 2012.

McVC is a Puerto Rico corporation specializing in the planning, financing, development and marketing of hospitality and mixed-use real estate projects in Puerto Rico. McVC personnel have over 30 years of experience in the hospitality and real estate industries and have advised local and international clients in designing and executing complex hospitality and real estate projects in Puerto Rico, the Caribbean and Spain.

McVC is an affiliate of McConnell Valdés LLC. This affiliation provides the continuity and support of one of the nation’s most respected Hispanic-owned law firms combined with the hospitality and real estate expertise and transactional track record of the professionals at McVC.

HI Development Corp. is a development and management company specializing in the hospitality industry. It has affiliates that have operated nationally franchised and independent hotels in the United States, the Caribbean, and Europe over the past 30 years. Founded in 1959 by Robinson Callen, H.I. Development Corp. is one of the foremost privately owned hotel management and consulting companies based in the Southeastern U.S. Currently, HI operates three full service hotels and two casinos in Puerto Rico including the Holiday Inn Mayaguez & El Tropical Casino, the Holiday Inn Ponce & El Tropical Casino, and the Howard Johnson in Ponce.

About Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family strive to make a difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by providing authentic hospitality. The Company’s subsidiaries manage, franchise, own and develop hotels and resorts under the Hyatt(R), Park Hyatt(R), Andaz(R), Grand Hyatt(R), Hyatt Regency(R), Hyatt Place(R) and Hyatt Summerfield Suites(R) brand names and have locations on six continents. Hyatt Residential Group, Inc., a Hyatt Hotels Corporation subsidiary, develops, operates, markets or licenses Hyatt Residences(TM)and Hyatt Vacation Club(R), which is changing its name to Hyatt Residence Club(TM). As of March 31, 2011, the Company’s worldwide portfolio consisted of 451 properties in 43 countries.

Source : www.hospitalitynet.org

Prateek