HARTFORD, CT (WFSB) – COVID has harmed many industries, including hotels, many of which have certainly suffered.
In Hartford, the corporate travel and convention business has declined and hotels are changing to stay afloat.
The Hilton, Hartford’s largest hotel, has lost a lot of business.
Even so, many were surprised to hear that it was for sale, but that failed and now there is a different strategy.
“One of the options for Downtown Hilton is perhaps to brand it with a different flag and convert some of it into residential buildings,” said Michael Freimuth, executive director of the Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA).
He said it’s been a tough time, and hotels are becoming hybrids in order to survive.
Case in point are the Homewood Suites on Asylum, moving towards apartments, as well as the former Red Lion Hotel on Morgan Street near Dunkin Donuts Park.
Hotels have received federal aid, but that has been used up.
Smaller hotels like The Goodwin seem to have done better. It doesn’t depend on large event bookings that were virtually nonexistent throughout the pandemic.
“It’s a little different from the bigger hotels. So when the business dries up and conventions are canceled, the bigger hotels suffer the most because they rely on high volume and basic business, ”said Randy Salvatore of RMS Companies.
However, inner-city living space is in demand. According to the CRDA, most of the apartments are 90 percent occupied and more apartments are on the way near the stadium.
While hotels may have found a way to survive, the concern is that now that more events are planned, there are more than 30 hotel rooms in the XL Center by the end of the year.
“Our mission is to run these large venues and to support them with hotels. And we have missions to build apartments, so we’re kind of in the crosshairs of our own dilemma, ”said Freimuth.
The goal is to save these hotels as best as possible. So right now it’s a mix, but it might take a while for things to get better. This industry may not fully recover in the next two years.
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