A North Bay hotel is continuing its renovation project with exterior upgrades expected to commence in the near future.
The Best Western, on Lakeshore Drive, began interior renovations in 2009 that have cost close to $2 million.
“We have certainly undertaken significant renovation work and it is not completed yet,” said general manager John Crescenzi. “Our upgrades are ongoing because in order to remain competitive, we need to invest some money.”
Best Western is currently the largest convention hotel in the city with 10,000 square feet of meeting space.
The meeting area foyer was upgraded with new carpet and light fixtures and the dark wallpaper was replaced with some reflecting a more modern flair.
“It looks a lot better now and more professional,” Crescenzi said.
A business centre will also be created since the hotel has only one computer in the lobby available to guests.
“We have some empty space adjacent to my office so we will be adding carpet and wallpaper and running some computer lines in there and that is to be done in a short period of time,” he said.
A new restaurant, Farina Ristorante, was launched in the hotel which offers Italian fare and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
“Our catch phrase is 'we may not be able to teach you how to speak Italian but we can teach you how to eat it,'” Crescenzi said. “We engaged a food and beverage guru from Sudbury who came and worked with our team so we offer really good Italian cuisine. We are quite proud of this and we have a great team there with great energy who are putting this front and centre.”
The hotel's other restaurant, the Courtyard Cafe, will be converted into a lounge and opened up to the meeting area foyer.
“We want it to be a corporate environment where guests can come in and connect their laptops to our wireless service,” he said. “It's in line with what the city doesn't have but what they need.”
While washroom upgrades were done previously on the rooms, recent renovations include new shower heads, beds and bedding.
“We got rid of the bedspreads and went to duvets and now we have triple sheeting,” Crescenzi said.
Along with a fitted sheet on the mattress, the duvet is sandwiched between two flat sheets.
“We have received very positive reviews from our guests,” he said.
The lobby has been modernized and the various shades of beige on the floor, ceiling and walls have been transformed.
“When you walked in, there was a feeling you weren't necessarily in anything exquisite,” he said.
Light grey slate tile has been laid on the floor and further upgrades include furniture and wall coverings. A tree, which was also in the lobby area, has also been removed.
“It looks quite inviting now,” Crescenzi said.
Upgrades were also made to the pool area and change rooms.
During the week, a good portion of Best Western's guests are corporate travellers but it is not focusing on becoming exclusive for them.
“We are a leisure hotel as well since many families take advantage of our close proximity to Lake Nipissing and other attractions,” he said. “In the winter, we have snowmobilers so we do have wide appeal.”
