Pfister opens Club Lounge, seeks new general manager
Original article for BizTimes.com
The Pfister Hotel in downtown Milwaukee, which is owned and managed by Marcus Hotels & Resorts, has completed renovations and opened the new Pfister Club Lounge for overnight guests.
Located in a 2,802-square-foot space on the 23rd floor of the hotel's tower, the new facility showcases expansive views of the city skyline and Lake Michigan.
"We're thrilled to offer our guests additional benefits when staying at The Pfister," said Chris Anderson, senior vice president of sales, marketing and brand development for Marcus Hotels & Resorts. "The Pfister Club Lounge gives guests another great space in which to work, connect with colleagues, or just relax and grab a bite to eat, while taking in an amazing view."
The exclusive Pfister Club Lounge will be open continuously from Sunday evenings to Friday evenings. With an atmosphere similar to a home library, it includes a fireplace, bookshelves, comfortable seating and workstations for individuals and small groups, Wi-Fi Internet access, printers, and televisions for monitoring the day's events.
Pfister Club Lounge guests can enjoy breakfast each morning, snacks and beverages throughout the day, and hors d'oeuvres in the evening. A "Club Concierge" attendant will assist Club Lounge guests.
The Pfister's 23rd floor also is home to the Blu Bar and the hotel's pool.
Guests who reserve rooms in the upper floors of the tower side of the hotel are automatically granted Club access. Hotel guests may alternatively choose to upgrade their room reservation to include Pfister Club Lounge access for any room type within the hotel for a nominal fee.
Closely following the Club Lounge renovation will be the addition of a brand-new, high-tech executive boardroom, also on the 23rd floor. Following completion of work on the 23rd floor, a renovation of the hotel's 176 tower guest rooms is slated to begin in fall 2013.
Meanwhile, the Pfister also has begun the search of a new general manager. Joe Kurth, general manager of the Pfister Hotel, has left Milwaukee to take over as the director of the Morris Inn and Notre Dame Conference Center at the University of Notre Dame in Notre Dame, Ind.
In his new role, Kurth will reopen and oversee operations of the recently expanded and remodeled Morris Inn.
"The Notre Dame Conference Center is integrating its operation with that of the Inn to optimize performance through a combined strategic direction," said a statement on the conference center's Facebook page.
Kurth joined the Pfister Hotel in August of 2007.
Omar Naimi, director of hotel operations at the Pfister Hotel, will fill in as the interim general manager during the search for Kurth's replacement.
The Marcus Corp. declined to comment on the progress of its search for a new general manager.