WASHINGTON, D.C. HOTEL BUSINESS. has learned that Packwood Management has purchased the 144-room Sofitel hotel here for a price of $20-$25 million. Packwood also inked a long-term management contract with MeriStar Hotels & Resorts to manage the property.
The hotel has been renamed The Churchill, effective immediately. As previously reported by HOTEL BUSINESS., Accor had agreed to give up management of the property immediately following its sale.
The Churchill will undergo a $4 million renovation beginning in July, with completion slated by the end of the year. All guestrooms will be renovated and the lobby and restaurant will also be revamped.
Philippe Duverger, the hotel s general manager reported that he will stay on in his post under new management, and that MeriStar and Packwood have successfully retained the hotel s entire staff “from management to bellmen.”
Duverger noted that the hotel will feature “the same staff offering the same service, but will just have a different name and revitalized product.” (5/2/01) Kelly Wayne