The 183-room resort in Paradise Valley, Ariz., will feature an 18-hole golf course, Hearth ’61 restaurant, Rusty’s patio and lounge, two 75-foot swimming pools with cabanas, and a pool bar. The opening will bring an end to more than a decade of uncertainty over the property, which was the site of the former Marriott Mountain Shadows that closed in 2004.
Mountain Shadows, a 183-room resort on the grounds of the former Marriott Mountain Shadows in Paradise Valley, Ariz., which closed in 2004, is aiming for a February 14 opening date, the Phoenix-based Arizona Republic reported.
The date, Arizona’s statehood day, is a nod to the original Mountain Shadows’ place in history. It opened in 1959 and was a vacation and entertainment hot spot for stars such as Bob Hope and Sammy Davis Jr. and locals in its heyday. A TV detective show, “The Brothers Brannagan,” filmed two seasons there shortly after it opened, the Republic reported.
Planned features for the hotel include:
- A par 3, 18-hole golf course by architect Forrest Richardson. It is expected to debut this year, before the resort opens.
- Hearth ’61: The restaurant, under veteran hotel executive chef Charles “Chuck” Wiley, will feature American cuisine and design befitting a desert resort with stunning views, glass walls and a large patio.
- Rusty’s, a patio and lounge named after Valley real estate legend Rusty Lyon.
- Two 75-foot-long swimming pools with cabanas and a pool bar. They will be open to Mountain Shadows homeowners as well as hotel guests.
The opening will bring an end to more than a decade of drama and uncertainty over the property. Owner Host Marriott closed the hotel in 2004 and put it up for sale. It was sold in 2007 to the developer of the luxe Montelucia resort down the street. Then the recession hit, the company ran into financial trouble and the planned development into a large new resort never materialized, the Republic reported.
The hotel was razed in 2014 to make room for new homes. Plans for a resort and golf course on the property were revived in 2015 when Woodbine Development and Westroc Hospitality purchased 45 acres of the property with plans for a boutique resort, the Republic reported.
Bill Nassikas, president and chief operating officer of Westroc, said Mountain Shadows has been on the company’s radar for years and that Westroc was outbid for the property on its first attempt several years ago, the Republic reported.
“It really comes to its location as the social crossroads of Paradise Valley,” Nassikas said. “For us, one and one equals three. We have Sanctuary across the street.”
Mountain Shadows will open at a time when the metro Phoenix lodging market is showing signs of slowing after a strong few years post-recession. Year to date through August, the average daily rate, a key industry metric, was down a fraction from the same period last year and occupancy and revenue per available room were up slightly, according to industry tracker STR, the Republic reported.
At the same time, other new hotels also are opening in the Scottsdale/Paradise Valley area, including Andaz Scottsdale Resort & Spa this year. Other luxury resorts, including the mammoth Phoenician, are undergoing major renovations. In 2018, the Ritz-Carlton Paradise Valley will come on the scene, the Republic reported.
Nassikas said Westroc’s other hotels are outperforming the market and that he is not worried about the timing of Mountain Shadows’ opening. “There’s not a lot on the drawing board that fits into our sector,” he said.
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