Chicago – Page 18 – Building The Godfrey

The Autonomy of the Independent Hotelier

Our area general manager, George Jordan, recently published an editorial piece for Hotel News Now describing the myriad of responsibilities that fall on the shoulders of the independent hotelier. Jordan draws on 30 years of experience managing hotels including The Drake, The Arizona Biltmore, The Raffaello Hotel and our neighbor, Hotel Felix.

Without the manpower of a brand to fall back on, boutique hotel managers are required to wear many hats, from IT services to customer relationship manager. Jordan recounts confronting a major technology snafu on his first day as general manager at The Raffaello Hotel:

My initial thought? Call information systems management and investigate. But there was no ISM. In fact, all 30 lines on the speed dial just rang to the front desk. I got a sinking feeling. What happens if we lose our T1 line? What if the fax line goes down? Who the heck am I going to call for help?

For more on Jordan’s learnings as an independent hotel key decision maker, please read on at Hotel News Now.

D is for Drywall

We have exciting #SiteVisit Friday news to report: we have drywall! The entire fifth floor is now dry walled and, if you look at the photos below, you can see what a difference it makes. This is a major step in the evolution of our property. One floor down, several more to go!

Framing // Before:

Drywall // After:

Our Website is Live

We’re pleased to unveil the official website of The Godfrey Hotel Chicago: http://www.godfreyhotelchicago.com.

Our website was designed to give viewers a preview of, what will be, the signature Godfrey experience and help you feel like You’re In Your Element.

Take a virtual tour of our property via our site and you’ll see details on our high-end amenities and the I|O urban roofscape, photos and renderings of the property and much more. We’re thrilled to debut our website – let us know what you think.

Big Changes #sitevisitgodfrey

It has been a while since we last posted a #sitevisitgodfrey post and wanted to keep you all up on the progress. We have been busy on the property replicating the work completed on the lower floors in the building interior with framing, plumbing, etc… for the guest room floors. We now have all the guest room floors from 5 through 16 being worked on.

As you have noticed if you walked by the hotel that the outer paneling of the building has been going up incredibly fast. We now have windows on the guest room floors and windows on the east and west walls being installed. The building on the North/South sides will have a total of 307 operable windows! The West side of the building facing LaSalle will have windows on the entire side from the ground floor up to 16. We have started the process on floor 5 to enclose the guest room floors first.

A big part of a hotel building project as I have stated is working in phases and now most phases are in full motion. Check out most of the update pictures below and enjoy some unique shots of the building.

South Side Of Building:

Scaffolding to install under section paneling on building

Paneling being installed on South Side Upper Section

Under paneling installed and windows in guest rooms. Yes, our guest room windows do open.

Building paneling delivery waiting to be installed on the 4th Floor Roofscape.

A View From The Top:

Steel Installation for HVAC Equipment

South Facing View with Steel from Rooftop

North East View from Rooftop

Beautiful View of the City Skyline South Facing

16 Floors Straight Down looking at N. LaSalle

16 Floors Straight Down looking at W. Huron St.

On The Inside:

West Facing Truss Joints

Truss Joints Facing South West

Service Elevator Cut-Out 16 Floors Down

Service Elevator Cut-Out

Two Guest Room Windows

Now that is a lot of wiring

HVAC Fan, very industrial.

Who knew they put that putty on the back of every electrical outlet

Glass Wall Curtain Windows Facing East towards the Hotel Felix

The Glass Curtain Facing West:

Windows Delivered Sitting In Crate

These are not your typical windows…

The two man crew uses scaffolding lowered down and a huge 3 suction window holder to position each piece

Floor 5-7 complete, when complete this side of the building will have an amazing look.

ENJOY YOUR MEMORIAL WEEKEND!

Taking A Look Back

We found a great photo of the River North Neighborhood we wanted to share. It is only fitting since we are changing the skyline in the area that we take moment and look back at how River North used to look. How about we take a look way back, pre-1950 way back. Do you think you can tell where our hotel will be located?

Photo credit and found on Skyscraper Forum – Historic Chicago Thread: http://goo.gl/mx01p