Westin Cleveland Downtown to Open in Spring 2014

January 21, 2013

Optima Ventures partnered with Sage Hospitality to buy and renovate downtown Cleveland’s second-largest hotel, The Crowne Plaza Cleveland City Center. They paid $9 million cash for the hotel and parking garage and invested $64 million to turn it into a luxurious Westin. Now,the joint venture has announced an opening date for The Westin Cleveland Downtown: Spring 2014. Willoughby, Ohio-based Marous Brothers Construction, the project's general contractor, started remodeling the property at t 777 E. St. Clair Ave. in December. Upgrades include a complete renovation of all guest rooms, of meeting space and all public spaces. The new exterior façade will feature metal panels and LED lighting that rotates through a range of colors.

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

Optima Ventures partnered with Sage Hospitality to buy and renovate downtown Cleveland’s second-largest hotel, The Crowne Plaza Cleveland City Center. They paid $9 million in cash for the hotel and parking garage and invested $64 million to turn it into a luxurious Westin. Now the joint venture has announced an opening date for The Westin Cleveland Downtown: Spring 2014.

Willoughby, Ohio-based Marous Brothers Construction, the project’s general contractor, started remodeling the property at 777 E. St. Clair Ave. in December. Upgrades include a complete renovation of all guest rooms, meeting space and all public spaces. The new exterior façade will feature metal panels and LED lighting that rotates through a range of colors.

The new Westin will have 484 guest rooms, all with Westin’s signature Heavenly in-room amenities. It will offer its guests 20,000 square feet of flexible event space that can be divided into 20 separate rooms, including a 9,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom connected to the floor above by a glass staircase, as well as a state-of-the-art fitness center, a business center and a Starbucks. Based in Cleveland’s downtown financial district, the hotel is near the new Cleveland convention center and Medical Mart, Brown’s Stadium and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The hotel will also get a new restaurant, the Urban Farmer-Cleveland’s Steakhouse, co-owned by Sage and Optima. Sage is also working with Cleveland’s LAND Studio to commission more than 1,000 pieces by local artists that reflect the city’s highly industrious and creative nature. The art will hang throughout the hotel, including a major sculpture above the main entrance.

The award-winning New York-based McCarted design firm designed the project. Once completed, it is expected to earn a LEED certification.

“The Westin Cleveland will offer an unparalleled lodging experience for downtown Cleveland,” said Ken Geist, executive vice president & partner at Denver-based Sage, in a news release. “We are striving to create a property that showcases Cleveland’s entrepreneurial spirit while also offering travelers the latest in luxury and high-tech amenities.” Noted Optima’s Chaim Schochet: “This hotel project is the perfect complement to the $200 million that Optima has already invested in Cleveland’s downtown.”