NEWS - Hospitality & Tourism

By Lou Phelps, SBJ Staff

Dec. 20, 2011—The Jekyll Island Authority’s development partner has chosen the Westin hotel chain for the island’s second major hotel  - completing the Authority's new convention center complex plans. 

At the Authority’s December board meeting on Monday, Dave Curtis of The Jekyll Landmark Associates of Delaware, one of three development companies the Authority is working with for the redevelopment project, announced that Westin would be the flag hotel, and an investor in the new 200-room hotel that the development company will be building and operating.

The Jekyll Landmark group signed an agreement last Friday with the Westin hotel group, according to Curtis.

The total hotel investment for the new Westin is projected to be $32.8 million, and is being funded 100% privately, including a portion by Westin, according to Jones Hooks, executive director of the Authority.  Construction is set start next summer, he said, in an interview the Savannah Business Journal today.

“We are very excited about the Westin, and the announcement. Certainly, in this economy, we are glad to hear the news…to see it move forward,” he explained.  Jekyll Landmark Associates had told the Authority board last year that they hoped to have a hotel commitment by the end of summer 2011, and they have been in negotiations with Weston, Hilton and Marriott, all of which had been willing to invest, the developer had told the board on several occasions.

The new full-service Westin will be adjacent to the Authority’s new 128,000 sq ft. convention center, now under construction, which will feature a 45,000 sq. ft. ballroom. The Authority voted Monday to call the ballroom Atlantic Hall and the convention center Jekyll Island Convention Center. The names had been under discussion for a period of time. 

“To have one of the world's top hotels in the Glynn County area, is big news.  This will bring opportunities to our community that we have never had before,” Jones added.  “The Westin will attract both business and leisure travelers because of the Westin's international frequent traveler awards program.”

In all, the Authority is working with three development companies for the complex, one building the new Hyatt Place hotel, one developing the retail complex and The Jekyll Landmark Associates for the full-service Westin.  The Hyatt and retail center are also being built entirely through private investment.  The State of Georgia is underwriting the bonds for the convention center. 

The new hotels are both beachfront, with connecting walkways, explains Jones. “To us, this is the newest concept around the U.S., and in Georgia, where hotels and convention centers are not necessarily connected, but adjacent. It’s more of a ‘free scape’ where people can walk outside and enjoy the environment.  You see this in malls, too. Something analogous would be the St. John Center mall in Jacksonville. Nothing is under cover – it is a free scape, with walkways and awnings,” Hooks explained.