Is An Ace Hotel Opening in Scottsdale? No, It's Not

March 9, 2011 at 9:31 AM | by juliana | Comment (1)

We got a tad too excited when we saw some internet chatter saying the hipster hotel brand du jour, Ace Hotels, would open in Scottsdale but upon closer look, it was just wishful thinking.

The Phoenix New Times reports that the ~~James Scottsdale~~, ~~Mondrian Scottsdale~~, er the Hotel Theodore could turn into an Ace Hotel now that The Sydell Group (the owners of the Ace NYC and Ace Palm Springs) have purchased the property with plans for a renovation and a rebranding.

We agree--an Ace Scottsdale is an excellent idea. Why have a random boutique hotel like the Theodore when you could capitalize off the success of the fun Ace brand?

But the real reason why this place won't become an Ace is that The Sydell Group has installed Joie de Vivre Hotels as the property's managers, meaning it's essentially a JDV Hotel right now. And as we told you last month, this is JDV's first hotel outside of California. Woot. So no, we don't think an Ace is gonna happen.

Indeed, Lori Lincoln, director of public relations for Joie de Vivre, clarified this for us saying:

We�re managing the Scottsdale property for Sydell Group so it will be a Joie de Vivre hotel, not an Ace Hotel, when it is relaunched.

Don't cry for Ace, you jean short-wearing, canvas bag-toting hipsters and interesting facial hair design sporting-hipsters! We think JDV Hotels are just as cool and fun.

Right now, the Hotel Theodore has not undergone any changes yet room rates are hovering at about $200 a night. The new look and name from Joie de Vivre should be revealed next fall with two indoor/outdoor bars, a new restaurant concept, 5,000 square feet of meeting and event space and two swimming pools plus a pool bar.

We sincerely hope JDV manages to stick around for a while here.

[Photo: Hotel Theodore's Facebook page]

Comment (1)

Return to » Is An Ace Hotel Opening in Scottsdale? No, It's Not

This is the best thing to happen to this hotel in its long, long history and many different incarnations. I am hopeful that this is just the first of three to five Joie De Vivre hotels in Phoenix. Same goes for Kimpton - they're working on their 2nd hotel here, and I'm also hoping they hit three to five hotels. Since we're now the 11th largest metro area in the US, and will be the 10th by November, and if population trends continue we'll top out at 5th by 2023, there's definitely room for experienced, well respected hotel companies like these to come in and provide a great alternative to the boring chains out there....

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