John Q. Hammons representatives and Flintco
Constructive Solutions have joined officials from the city of Murfreesboro and
Rutherford County to watch as an evergreen tree was placed on top of the
construction site to celebrate the completion of the highest structural
point of Mr. John Q. Hammons’ new 10-story, 283-suite Embassy Suites
Murfreesboro Hotel & Conference Center. The first development of its kind
in the area, the hotel and conference center will be owned by Mr. John Q.
Hammons and managed by Springfield, Mo.-based John Q. Hammons Hotels &
Resorts.

The executive management and sales team for the Embassy Suites -
Murfreesboro Hotel & Conference Center also was introduced at the event.
These veterans have the combined experience of more than 50 years in the
hospitality industry.

-    David W. Latture was announced as general manager of the new hotel.
Latture arrives from the Embassy Suites - Cool Springs Hotel and has spent
more than 30 years in the hospitality industry.

-    Becky Vealey was named the director of sales and marketing.  The
Embassy Suites- Murfreesboro Hotel & Conference Center will be the third
John Q. Hammons hotel Vealey has helped open.

-    Nancy Deal, senior sales manager, will handle all association group
business at this and another nearby John Q. Hammons hotel.  Deal brings
almost 20 years of hospitality industry experience to the team.

 

“We’ve assembled a strong executive management and sales team to form a
great foundation for the new Murfreesboro property,” said Mr. Latture,
general manager Embassy Suites - Murfreesboro Hotel & Conference Center.
“The entire staff will be built around our dedication to provide the
exceptional guest service that has become synonymous with Mr. Hammons’
hotels.”

 

Scheduled to open in fall 2008, the all-suite, luxury hotel and conference
center will be the first Embassy Suites Hotel within an approximate 30-mile
radius of the city of Murfreesboro.  The completed hotel and adjoining
80,000-square-foot conference center are estimated to create 225 new jobs
to the area and contribute more than $23 million in revenue to the
Rutherford County economy annually.  The Murfreesboro property marks the
second full-service hotel and the first conference center Mr. Hammons has
built in Tennessee.

 

“This topping-off ceremony marks a milestone in construction at the
Murfreesboro property, and we anticipate continued success as we anxiously
follow the development progress on this upscale hotel and state-of-the-art
conference center,” said Mr. Bill Mead, regional vice president, John Q.
Hammons Hotels & Resorts.

 

Attendees at the topping-off ceremony included: Mr. Mead, representing John
Q. Hammons Hotels & Resorts, along with the hotel’s new executive and sales
team; Mayor Tommy Bragg, city of Murfreesboro; members of the Destination
Rutherford board of directors; members of the Rutherford County Chamber of
Commerce board of directors; and Murfreesboro city council representatives.

 

“It was wonderful to be here today to see the evergreen tree raised to the
top of the new structure to symbolize growth and good luck,” said Mayor
Bragg.  “Rutherford County and Murfreesboro have a tremendous need for a
facility like this, and our area holds the promise of growth and another
successful development for Mr. Hammons.”

 

The land for the Embassy Suites Hotel Murfreesboro and conference center
was purchased by the city, which is being leased by Mr. Hammons for the
development.  It will be strategically located near SR-840 in the southeast
quadrant of I-24 and Medical Center Parkway and will be adjacent to the new
lifestyle center, ‘The Avenue Murfreesboro.’  A joint venture between
Faison & Associates and Cousins Properties, the lifestyle center will
feature nearly 1 million square feet of restaurant, home furnishings and
fashion shopping in an open-air setting and is slated to host its official
grand opening in October 2007.
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