OCEAN CITY, MD HOTEL BUSINESS. has learned that Dr. Leonard Berger is undertaking a $40 million project to expand the Gateway Resort Hotel here, which, upon completion, will become a Clarion-branded property.
Berger s decision to convert the property follows the recent re-branding and renovation of the Oceanfront Clarion, also owned by Berger, which operated under the Sheraton flag for 17 years.
The Gateway Resort project will be executed in two phases. When complete, it will hit the market as the largest hotel in Ocean City. Construction on the first phase, set to begin this fall, will include increasing the hotel s current room count from 75 to a total of 276 units, as well as the addition of 30,000 square feet of meeting space.
A timetable for the second phase has not yet been determined, but, according to Berger, it calls for an additional 198 units to be added to the hotel.
“We plan to build the first phase and re-name the hotel, operate as such and get our cash flow up and then a few years later we will begin the second phase,” said Berger.
Berger is confident that the Ocean City market can handle two Clarion hotels. The Gateway Resort Hotel is located just seven blocks from the convention center, which was recently renovated and expanded.
The Oceanfront Clarion Resort Fontainbleau, according to Berger, has its own private beach and is one of the few hotels in the area to provide beachside entertainment. (4/30/01) Kelly Wayne