The New Bridge Hotel Boca Raton

Sun Sentinel Article By Marci Shatzman  (February 21,2013)

"All of Boca is beautiful, but certain spots have something unique," Mayor Susan Whelchel noted, citing the location's "ambiance."

Boca Raton City Council Unanimously Approves Plans Presented By Globally Renowned

Award-Winning Gensler Design Firm For Complete Transformation of Boca Raton Bridge Hotel 

 

BOCA RATON, FL (February 13, 2013) - AWH Partners, LLC and The Lane Organization LLC jointly announced that the international renowned award-winning Gensler design firm has been selected to lead the architectural, interior design, and brand transformation of the Boca Raton Bridge Hotel. With Boca Raton City Council approval granted yesterday on Gensler’s reinvention concepts, the comprehensive transformation of the boutique hotel into a four-star status will begin in May 2013.

The Bridge Hotel remains one of Boca’s most notable, operating as a traditional hotel, as new ownership repositions and reinvents it to be more relevant and exciting to meet the desires and needs of today’s discerning vacationers as well as social and business guests. Led by a seasoned team of designers and hospitality, operations, management and marketing consultants, the hotel is being completely transformed into a premier South Florida experience with its own newly positioned distinctive signature in the destination.

“We are excited to introduce Gensler's extraordinary vision into the complete re-imagination of this beloved Boca icon,” noted Russ Flicker, managing member of AWH Partners, LLC., a joint venture between August Group Ventures, LLC and Winston Harton Holdings, LLC.

Gensler is a leading award-winning global architecture, design, planning, and strategic consulting firm that partners with companies to achieve measurable business and organizational goals through design. For more than 45 years, it has been a pioneer in creating great places that enhance the quality of work and life. Today, Gensler has more than 3,500 professionals networked across 43 locations. During the last year, Gensler worked in 86 countries with 2,248 clients. Among its most notable hotel designs are the Shore Hotel in Santa Monica, California; The Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences and JW Marriott at L.A. Live, Los Angeles, CA; and Hotel Monaco, a Kimpton boutique hotel in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

“Gensler’s team of architects, designers, planners and consultants dedicated to this particular transformation recognize and understand the importance of embracing local community nuances that make the Boca Raton destination desirable and special,” added Matt Lane, partner in The Lane Organization. “The firm’s design concepts celebrate a distinctive coming-of-age ‘sense of place’ while at the same time aesthetically incorporates emerging trend-relevant regional and global hospitality perspectives.”

Gregory Flis, Design Director with Gensler who leads the Boca Raton Bridge Hotel project, shared that preliminary concepts take inspiration from the hotel’s unique position directly on the water.

“The new vision for the property will create a distinctive hotel and restaurant destination that appeals to all the senses,” noted Flis. “Guests and visitors will feel renewed and fully-immersed in a sophisticated and comfortable atmosphere. It will have a definite sense of place with an updated coastal vibe. Whether enjoying breakfast on a balcony, an intimate dinner, or soaking up the ambiance of a sunset, the setting will blend the sights, sounds and textures that make memorable experiences. It will be authentically Boca, with a fresh perspective.”

The preliminary phase of the Bridge Hotel’s major “reinvention” plan to position the property to luxury boutique hotel four-star status was launched in November 2012 with the construction of the hotel’s new “waterfront promenade” that flanks the property’s entire Lake Boca perimeter.

The hotel’s complete transformation led by Gensler will include the introduction of entirely new hospitality and dining concepts, further expansion waterfront amenities, and extensive reorientation and renovations of public spaces, guestrooms, and restaurants. Reinvention plans will take optimal advantage of the property’s most distinctive assets: its prime location -- on the Intracoastal Waterway and Lake Boca with direct access to Atlantic Ocean -- and its breathtaking water views.

“There are always certain spots in any city that really just have something unique going for them and this particular piece of property is one of those rare finds in our city where the entire public as they boat or drive or take walks can utilize the ambiance and see the beauty of the lake and the location,” noted City of Boca Raton Mayor Susan Whelchel at yesterday’s Boca Raton City Council meeting. “All of Boca will be very, very proud and happy when this particular property is renovated. The beauty of the property is really something to behold.”

AWH Partners, LLC, identifies and acquires outstanding assets in key locations that require operational and physical repositioning to achieve their highest and best use. The Bridge is an established community icon in an enviable locale with a longtime history serving as the locals’ favorite “guesthouse” for visiting friends, family, and colleagues. The acquisition afforded the partnership the opportunity to return to South Florida to expand its presence add another “hotel repositioning success story” to its burgeoning portfolio. The Lane Organization LLC enters into cities to reposition assets and team up with management firms who can assimilate to their locations while standing out amongst the competition. Lane Hospitality, the management firm for the Boca Raton Bridge Hotel and unrelated to the Lane Organization LLC, is committed to preserving, protecting and enhancing the value of hotel real estate, and provides expertise in all facets of hospitality management and brand marketing.

The Boca Raton Bridge Hotel, one of Palm Beach County’s boutique icon hotels with panoramic water views from every guest room, is located where the Intracoastal Waterway and Lake Boca Raton meet at 999 East Camino Real in Boca Raton. For hotel reservations, visit www.bocaratonbridgehotel.com or call (561) 368-9500; for dining updates at WaterColor's or reservations for Carmen’s award-winning Sunday Brunch, call (561) 886-4570 or visit www.OpenTable.com.

About AWH Partners, LLC

AWH Partners, LLC, a joint venture between August Group Ventures, LLC and Winston Harton Holdings, LLC, offers an experienced institutional investment and management platform with dedicated capital. For more information, visit www.AWHPartners.com.

About August Group Ventures, LLC

August Group Ventures is a privately held real estate investment, development and management firm founded in 2009 by New York-based Related Companies veteran Chad Cooley to pursue opportunities in the ailing hospitality market. August Group owns and manages hotels around the United States and seeks opportunities to invest in and manage assets requiring capital, repositioning and turn-around expertise. For more information, visit www.AugustGroupVentures.com.

About Winston Harton Holdings, LLC

Winston Harton Holdings, LLC (WHH) was established by Russell Flicker and Jonathan Rosenfeld to acquire distressed, value-added and operationally intensive real estate assets through equity and debt. Its principals have extensive experience and complementary skill sets in the real estate sector, including acquisitions (private transactions and public securities), capital markets and asset management and asset repositioning. WHH will partner with both traditional institutional capital as well as private pools of capital to pursue transactions ranging from $10 - $250 mm. For more information, visit www.WHHLLC.com.

About The Lane Organization, LLC

The Lane Organization LLC (“Lane Organization”) was founded by Clifford P. Lane and his son Matthew in 2011. Focusing on luxury hotels, the Lane Organization enters into cities to reposition assets and team up with management firms who can assimilate to their locations while standing out amongst the competition. The Lane Organization emphasizes building strong partnerships while maintaining the company’s core ideas, beliefs, and values to ensure the success of all of its properties. For more information please visit www.TheLaneOrganization.com.

About Lane Hospitality

Lane Hospitality offers expertise in all facets of hospitality management and is committed to preserving, protecting and enhancing the value of hotel real estate. For more information, visit www.LaneHospitality.com.

Construction Begins On Bridge Hotel Waterfront Promenade

Serving Up The Only Public “Dock To Dine” Experience In Boca Raton

 

BOCA RATON, FL (November 26, 2012) –In just a little more than three months since its acquisition, AWH Partners, LLC and The Lane Organization LLC jointly announce that construction on the pre-approved much awaited 270-foot wraparound seawall and dock at the Boca Raton Bridge Hotel will begin Wednesday, November 28th. Dubbed its “waterfront promenade”, the new dock-to-dine amenity will offer guests the opportunity to arrive by boat for the only public “on-the-water” dining in Boca Raton served up at The Bridge Hotel’s popular WaterColor's restaurant.

The dock expansion and enhancement that will flank the property’s entire Lake Boca perimeter marks the initial phase of the Bridge Hotel’s major “reinvention” redevelopment plan. The subsequent transformation phase, anticipated to begin in late spring/early summer, will be much more comprehensive with the introduction of entirely new hospitality and dining concepts, further expansion waterfront amenities, and extensive renovations of guestrooms, restaurants and public spaces.

The Bridge Hotel remains one of Boca’s most notable, operating as a traditional hotel, as new ownership repositions and reinvents it to be more relevant and exciting to meet the desires and needs of today’s discerning vacationers as well as social and business guests. Led by a seasoned team of designers and consultants the hotel is being completely transformed into a premier South Florida experience with its own newly positioned distinctive signature in the destination.

 

Construction Is Prelude To What Is In Store

“Construction on the new seawall and dock is just the first step in our comprehensive transformation of the Bridge Hotel, serving as a prelude to what is in store for guests and the community in upcoming phases planned to position the property to luxury boutique hotel four-star status,” noted Russ Flicker, managing partner of AWH Partners, LLC., a joint venture between August Group Ventures, LLC and Winston Harton Holdings, LLC, in Partnership with The Lane Organization. “The best is yet to come.”

AWH Partners, LLC identifies and acquires outstanding assets in key locations that require operational and physical repositioning to achieve their highest and best use. The Bridge is an established community icon in an enviable locale with a longtime history serving as the locals’ favorite “guesthouse” for visiting friends, family, and colleagues. The acquisition afforded the partnership the opportunity to return to South Florida to expand its presence add another “hotel repositioning success story” to its burgeoning portfolio.

 

Dining Guest Comfort A Priority During Daytime-Only Dock Construction

For guest comfort while the daytime-only dock construction is in progress from Monday through Friday, a la carte breakfast and lunch traditionally served at WaterColor's will be relocated to Carmen’s at the Top of the Bridge, with happy hour and dinner resuming at WaterColor's from 4:30 p.m.-11 p.m.

WaterColor's new menu, introduced this week, will be served in Carmen’s where guests enjoy sweeping penthouse-level panoramic views of Lake Boca, Intracoastal and Atlantic Ocean. New lunch and dinner starters and entries include Spinach, Crabmeat & Artichoke Dip; Chicken Portabella Quesadilla; Bridge Sliders; Veggie Burger; Waverunner Sandwich, and fresh clams and mussels.

The Boca Raton Bridge Hotel, one of Palm Beach County’s boutique icon hotels with panoramic water views from every guest room, is located where the Intracoastal Waterway and Lake Boca Raton meet at 999 East Camino Real in Boca Raton. For hotel reservations, visit www.bocaratonbridgehotel.com or call (561) 368-9500; for dining updates at WaterColor's or reservations for Carmen’s award-winning Sunday Brunch, call (561) 886-4570 or visit www.OpenTable.com.