I have no reason to doubt you, cafeboeuf, but hadn't they already been working on other projects before this started? Maybe I'm remembering it incorrectly, but wasn't this one of their more recent projects to break ground? Were they working off old designs?

Yes and no - they had started a few rehabs, but nothing of great significance. They had this designed and approved in 2007/2008 crash hit, so they tabled it. I bet they didn't want to spend time w/ a redesign when financing came available again and they could construct starting in 2013.

Not supporting the design - just providing the background. This couples greatly with Steve's article about a new vision for the entire area. The designs were acceptable b/c no one was pushing for anything else. That appears about to change...

Just learned their opening is set for January 27th, 2015.

That would be great - I've got family coming in late February (depending on birth of our 2nd) and this is only 8 blocks away.

However, Hilton's website still shows reservations being accepted after March 27, 2015. Hopefully the opening does come in January.

So, my sister in law works at the ICU at OUHSC. When we were talking about the ES, she asked why there isn't a more affordable, extended stay hotel in the area. It would make more sense since there are so many people who come in to town to see family/friends in the hospital. I told her the Homewood suites in BT was extended stay and I think there is one other (Staybridge Suites) proposed, that would also be extended stay and in BT, so not too far from OUHSC. Is there more of a need for an extended stay hotel in the immediate area though? Maybe a Hyatt House although the footprint of those are massive.

That would be great - I've got family coming in late February (depending on birth of our 2nd) and this is only 8 blocks away.

However, Hilton's website still shows reservations being accepted after March 27, 2015. Hopefully the opening does come in January.

I spoke to the GM today would gave me the January date, but of course that could slip.

I think it's pretty typical to have the on-line res system only indicate dates that are usually well after the "soft" opening.

They did say they would open the entire hotel at the same time: rooms, restaurants, meeting facilities, etc.

12/16/2014

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So frustrated with the site layout here... drove by again this past weekend and it's amazing how they decided to lay it out. It fronts a side street, with the loading dock and non-window areas fronting 8th and towards Lincoln. Completely ignores any "urban" fabric that may have existed.

So frustrated with the site layout here... drove by again this past weekend and it's amazing how they decided to lay it out. It fronts a side street, with the loading dock and non-window areas fronting 8th and towards Lincoln. Completely ignores any "urban" fabric that may have existed.It's quite simple. You just build around the hotel.

Gross.

So frustrated with the site layout here... drove by again this past weekend and it's amazing how they decided to lay it out. It fronts a side street, with the loading dock and non-window areas fronting 8th and towards Lincoln. Completely ignores any "urban" fabric that may have existed.

Not sure why they didn't make it face 8th st. That would've made a lot more sense. But as far as urban fabric, there wasn't any. It was built in a field.

Yes and no - they had started a few rehabs, but nothing of great significance. They had this designed and approved in 2007/2008 crash hit, so they tabled it. I bet they didn't want to spend time w/ a redesign when financing came available again and they could construct starting in 2013.

Not supporting the design - just providing the background. This couples greatly with Steve's article about a new vision for the entire area. The designs were acceptable b/c no one was pushing for anything else. That appears about to change...


So frustrated with the site layout here... drove by again this past weekend and it's amazing how they decided to lay it out. It fronts a side street, with the loading dock and non-window areas fronting 8th and towards Lincoln. Completely ignores any "urban" fabric that may have existed.

Yep. I said this early on that what they were building was going to be a massive disappointment. Just so frustrating to see this is what they built.

I looked at this and first thought it was at Meridian Avenue. uggh

Did they open yet?

This is officially open.

Anyone have pics of the finished product?

nm

Many thanks to Plutonic Panda for taking all these today:

OKCTalk - Embassy Suites hotel opens in Health Sciences Center (http://www.okctalk.com/content/114-embassy-suites-opens.html)




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professional looking pics.

Great impressive pics by Plutonic Panda.

The Embassy suites opens the door to host some small medical related conferences & institutes.

Thanks so much for the compliments! Really means a lot!

I'm very impressed with all of Plutonic's pictures as of late.
Does this mean that you are now the official OkcTalk photographer? Great work and keep it up, you have a good eye with the camera.

Thank you! My new iPhone camera is great and probably has something to do with it lol.

Thank you! My new iPhone camera is great and probably has something to do with it lol.

I don't know if it's the camera, plupan, but your pics have certainly improved in both quality and composition. Keep up the good work.

Despite the overall layout of the hotel itself the inside appears to be very well done and modern. Will be a great asset to the area.

I bet this hotel does very, very well.

It was badly needed in the area and will help to serve the various medical, educational and businesses in the area.

Bet their meeting rooms will be heavily booked.

I wonder if they allowed for future expansion, because they have plenty of land and I bet they'll have the demand.

Plus the flag will attract bookings that otherwise were going to other parts of the city. Flag diversity in the central city is a good thing.

The interior is nice but the site is visually horrific.

The interior is nice but the site is visually horrific.
I bet no one will stay there for that very reason. This will have to be closed and boarded up.

Anecdotes from my parents - they are staying there March 18-21:

Staff have told other guests they are 100% booked and 40% staffed - not expecting to be busy so quickly
The restaurant has run out of food for the free morning breakfast twice in the past week
People that used to use the Embassy Suites on Meridian have flocked to the new one - the old one has not been renovated
The hotel does not carry Fox Sports Oklahoma, not even in the bar (I surmised that they didn't have it in the rooms so that they'd drive revenue at the bar, but my parents said even the bar doesn't have it)
Quite a bit of the staff are out-of-town transfers so they don't much about the area

Just anecdotes, some based on third-party... I knew this hotel would be busy, but I would agree that I thought its busyness would ramp up, not start out at full tilt.

It's all about being a new flag for the center of the city. Lots of people are brand-loyal, and look at the brand first and location second. Once they've found the brand in the reservation system, they look for the location that best suits their needs/desires. For many people the closer to the center of a city the better. So it stands to reason that once opened they would get the bulk of reservations from ES-loyal people on first-time visits to OKC, combined with people who knew about the hotel, have business downtown or in OUHSC, etc.

The Holiday Inn Express Bricktown is experiencing similar overwhelming success in bookings for the same reasons, but fortunately they have an incredibly veteran management team with tons of OKC and downtown experience. Plus, despite the fact that they were technically setbacks, the opening delays they experienced due to lagging inspections and such allowed them to fully assemble and heavily train their staff before the doors officially opened.

But to be fair, the Holiday Inn Express is much smaller without meeting rooms, a restaurant or bar.

This Embassy Suites is full-service and way bigger.

In any event, glad to know both properties are so busy. Just goes to show there is still plenty of demand for downtown hotels even with all the new ones opening up.

I think it shows several things.

1. There is a pent up demand for services in an area that has lots of visitors and has been under-served.
2. There is a pent up demand for full service hotels in the area of downtown. Every other developer wants to put up limited service cheaper hotels and I think we are in danger of overbuilding that segment. When fuller service hotels are built downtown, their customers that are there for the location, but not the hotel, will migrate to the fuller service and create oversupply in the limited service segment.
3. There is an immediate need to get busy changing the requirements around the OUHSC and the Innovation District. Those who like to complain after the fact need to get busy and drive it before it becomes an even hotter area. We need to quit complaining so much about what is being done wrong and DRIVE WHAT WE CAN DO RIGHT. It takes effort and money to get the changes made.
4. The thoughts of what is core OKC should be changing to include the OUHSC all the way over to Western and from 1-40 to 23rd street. There is demand and there will be much more development. We need to get in front of it now.

I think it shows several things.

1. There is a pent up demand for services in an area that has lots of visitors and has been under-served.
2. There is a pent up demand for full service hotels in the area of downtown. Every other developer wants to put up limited service cheaper hotels and I think we are in danger of overbuilding that segment. When fuller service hotels are built downtown, their customers that are there for the location, but not the hotel, will migrate to the fuller service and create oversupply in the limited service segment.
3. There is an immediate need to get busy changing the requirements around the OUHSC and the Innovation District. Those who like to complain after the fact need to get busy and drive it before it becomes an even hotter area. We need to quit complaining so much about what is being done wrong and DRIVE WHAT WE CAN DO RIGHT. It takes effort and money to get the changes made.
4. The thoughts of what is core OKC should be changing to include the OUHSC all the way over to Western and from 1-40 to 23rd street. There is demand and there will be much more development. We need to get in front of it now.

Agree. 100%. Especially #3.

But to be fair, the Holiday Inn Express is much smaller without meeting rooms, a restaurant or bar.

This Embassy Suites is full-service and way bigger...
I don't think that changes my point at all. My point is that the new Embassy Suites is probably grabbing business that otherwise would have gone to ES west, ES Norman, other Hilton reservation system hotels, etc. Mostly because if you are making a reservation and see it on a map, it generally seems like a more appealing location. It's not really competing with other downtown properties as much as it is regional properties on the same reservation system and specifically hotels with the same flag.

Same holds true for HIE and other recent downtown additions on national reservation systems. The challenge sounds like it will be to get kinks worked out before people flock back to other properties.

I don't think that changes my point at all. My point is that the new Embassy Suites is probably grabbing business that otherwise would have gone to ES west, ES Norman, other Hilton reservation system hotels, etc. Mostly because if you are making a reservation and see it on a map, it generally seems like a more appealing location. It's not really competing with other downtown properties as much as it is regional properties on the same reservation system and specifically hotels with the same flag.

Same holds true for HIE and other recent downtown additions on national reservation systems. The challenge sounds like it will be to get kinks worked out before people flock back to other properties.

The family that my parents talked to were showing cattle at the Fairgrounds, and usually stay on Meridian, but love ES and wanted to go with the newer, fresher hotel...

Now there's an under-served market, in my opinion. Hotels closer to the constantly busy Fairgrounds.

I don't think that changes my point at all. My point is that the new Embassy Suites is probably grabbing business that otherwise would have gone to ES west, ES Norman, other Hilton reservation system hotels, etc. Mostly because if you are making a reservation and see it on a map, it generally seems like a more appealing location. It's not really competing with other downtown properties as much as it is regional properties on the same reservation system and specifically hotels with the same flag.

Same holds true for HIE and other recent downtown additions on national reservation systems. The challenge sounds like it will be to get kinks worked out before people flock back to other properties.

So you are saying this is an aberration and the true demand is not there? Seems like the OUHSC and the Innovation District would drive quite a bit of demand itself.

That's not at all what I am saying. Where are you getting that from what I said? I'm saying that in addition to the built-in demand from the surrounding area this property is ALSO grabbing area-nonspecific OKC-wide demand for that flag and for that reservation system. The same thing happened with the Skirvin. When it opened in 2007 it not only benefited from pent-up demand for downtown rooms, plus nostalgic interest in the building itself from within the community but ALSO from general Hilton customers who previously would have gone to other properties in the city. I regularly spoke (and continue to speak) with people who booked the Skirvin merely because it was a Hilton property and the closest to the center of the city. They were/are always pleasantly surprised that it is a historic hotel. That is, their booking had nothing to do with the property itself, only the flag and location were factors.

My point is that it should have been no surprise that the Embassy Suites was slammed with business from day one. I doubt it was a surprise to the management; they probably have had a hard time hiring locally (standard right now for the service industry) and probably explains why so much of the staff is from out of town.

I see and agree.