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US: the Radisson University Hotel on the University of Minnesota’s East Bank campus is being transformed in to a four-star boutique hotel.
The property was bought last March by Ohio-based RockBridge Partners for $18.5 million. The company announced plans to spend a further $14.8 million on converting the building – which has been a Radisson for 30 years, into an independent boutique property called the Commons Hotel.
“We don’t call it a renovation. It’s more like a transformation,” said Duane Rohrbaugh, general manager of the Commons Hotel. He added that the rebranding will focus on guests “embracing a sense of inner geek”.
The hotel will begin booking under the rebranded name in mid-August when new rates will be released.
The transformation of the 304-room property is being overseen by Noble House Hotels & Resorts, a Seattle-based hotel management company. It operates 16 hotels in locations including such as Telluride, the Napa Valley and Naples, Florida. The Commons is its first Midwestern property.
RockBridge has invested nearly $3 billion in the hospitality industry since 1992, and has developed hotels in college towns in Oregon, Iowa and Michigan.
www.commonshotel.com
www.noblehousehotels.com
