InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) today announced that Crowne Plaza, Asia Pacific’s fastest growing upscale hotel brand, is to be established in one of Sydney’s largest commercial precincts, Norwest Business Park.
The 132-room Norwest International will become the 14th Crowne Plaza hotel in Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific when it re-brands as Crowne Plaza Norwest Sydney in early February 2004.
Crowne Plaza Norwest will be the only hotel located within the 377 hectare Norwest Business Park, which is home to over 320 businesses and the headquarters of major corporations such as IBM, ResMed, BASF, C&W Optus, Sigma Pharmaceuticals, Wyeth Australia, Schneider Electrics and Woolworths Limited. More than 9,000 people work within the Park, which offers 240,000 sqm of business space representing an investment in excess of A$1 billion.
Crowne Plaza Norwest consists of 132 superbly appointed standard, king and spa rooms including suites for the disabled, complimentary parking for 200, gymnasium, heated lap swimming pool, Foxtel, modern restaurant and seven spacious conferencing and banquet rooms (ranging from Boardroom style catering for 8 to a large business conference for 300). Award winning gardens complete with gazebo and fountain offering a wonderful location for wedding ceremonies or photographs.
An integrated work and living environment, Norwest also offers two shopping centres, an ice-skating rink, 30 hectares of lakes and parkland and the 122-hectare Bella Vista housing estate. The Park is only 15 minutes from North Ryde and Parramatta and 30 minutes from the Sydney CBD.
“Crowne Plaza Norwest Sydney is a further example of our strategy to establish the brand in key locations for business interaction. The Western Sydney business community is expanding rapidly, and the rising number of global companies establishing their headquarters at Norwest demonstrates the need for an internationally recognised brand in the area,” said InterContinental Hotels Group Chief Operating Officer for Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific, Phil Lee.
“Crowne Plaza Norwest will offer global products and services designed with the needs of today’s business travellers in mind. Our recently-launched program Meeting Success – which includes services such as a dedicated Crowne Meetings Director and a 2 Hour Response to all meeting enquiries – will firmly establish Crowne Plaza Norwest as The Place to Meet,” Mr Lee said.
Crowne Plaza Norwest General Manager, Kurt O. Wehinger said: “As Norwest’s appeal among major corporations has grown, we’ve identified the need to provide an accommodation offering that is recognised internationally and uniquely designed to cater to the business market. Crowne Plaza has a global reputation as a premium business hotel, which suits the needs of businesses located at Norwest Business Park.
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“Crowne Plaza’s appeal is spreading with the growth of its network. The opportunity to leverage synergies with our new sister hotels around Australia, will be fantastic for business,” Mr Wehinger said.
According to one of the hotel’s owners, Farhad Zulfiqar, Norwest International has also secured approval for development of a further 142 rooms / apartments on an adjoining site to Crowne Plaza Norwest, to commence in the near future.
Crowne Plaza Norwest Sydney will be the third Western Sydney hotel to change its independent brand in favour of an IHG global brand over the last twelve months, joining Holiday Inn Rooty Hill and Holiday Inn Penrith Panthers. IHG’s portfolio of hotels in Western Sydney also includes Crowne Plaza Parramatta, which is located in the heart of Sydney’s second CBD.
As a Crowne Plaza, the hotel will have instant access to the tens of thousands of people who book accommodation through InterContinental Hotels Group’s global reservation network every day, and the 18 million members of the Group’s global multi-brand loyalty program, Priority Club Rewards.
Mr Lee added: “We have led the way in establishing a portfolio of mid- and upscale business and leisure hotels in Western Sydney. As the region continues to grow in prominence as the home of local and global corporations, InterContinental Hotels Group will be in the best position to provide benefits of scale to owners.”
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