Upscale hotel,conference center opens in future lifestyle hub
Sept. 8, 2006
By JOSEPH M. DELEON News-Post Staff
jdeleon @ fredericknewspost . com
GETTYSBURG, PA — White pillars line a flaxen colored foyer adorned with luxurious carpet decorated with eagles clutching arrows and olive branches. Chandeliers sparkle with sinuous strands of crystal beads that form domes of glitter. Glass-fronted cabinets show timeworn tins of sugar and tea. Padded leather seats welcome guests to study nearby portraits of Civil War heroes, such as Gens. George Pickett and Robert E. Lee.
Visitors might envision themselves in some lavish library or luxurious museum, if not for the reception desk.
Welcome to the Wyndham Gettysburg Hotel.
The $40 million upscale hotel and conference center opened Thursday on Gateway Gettysburg, a 100-acre development at the intersection of U.S. 15 and U.S. 30. The development will include chain restaurants, retail stores, a bank and a park.
The hotel has been built ahead of Crossroads Gaming Resort and Spa, a proposed $300 million, 3,000-slot casino at the U.S. 15-U.S. 30 intersection. Residents in the town are split over the casino, some saying it will detract from Gettysburg 's historic character and others saying it will boost the economy.
The first guests will check in today. About 130 guest rooms have been reserved for this weekend and more than 70 groups have booked meetings through 2008.
“The carefully crafted decor reflects the military battles of Gettysburg and presidency of Lincoln ,” said Hans Schreiber, the hotel's director of sales and marketing. “This beautiful patriotic motif is reflected in the entire facility.”
The hotel has 250 rooms and 11 suites, all of which have 27-inch flat screen television sets, cordless phones and wireless Internet. A desk in each room is furnished with an ergonomic work chair.
Photographs of rural Gettysburg hang in every room. Charles “Jim” Lott, an Adams County, Pa. farmer, captured them in the 1930s, chronicling his agrarian surroundings.
Cross-state promotion
Mr. Schreiber led a month-long campaign in Frederick County to attract hotel guests who work in biotechnology, manufacturing and military-related businesses.
“We're putting an emphasis on the technology industry in Frederick , businesses that might otherwise go to Baltimore or Washington for meetings and conferences,” he said.
If 65,000 square feet of meeting space and luxurious quarters aren't enough to attract customers, Mr. Schreiber hopes a three-story digital video display — larger than a basketball court — and upscale dining will.
Gateway Gettysburg , a sprawling campus known as a lifestyle center, follows a recent trend to develop land zoned for both commercial and residential purposes. Lifestyle centers aim to draw people with a variety of events and activities, so all their needs can be met in one place.
A lifestyle center usually has an openair configuration and often incorporates upscale residences, according to the International Council of Shopping Centers.
Gateway Gettysburg is also home to a Marriott Courtyard hotel and Gateway Theaters, an eight-screen cinema that uses high-definition digital projection.
Designers of the theater entrance tried to fuse the look of Washington 's government buildings with a more modern architectural style. White columns form an arch in front of a towering glass facade. A seemingly infinite number of stars create a vast galaxy on the carpet while streams of blue and red linens drape the walls.
Guests can schedule presentations or parties at Gateway Gettysburg's theater.
“We can pull any broadcast in the world onto that screen,” Mr. Schreiber said. “We think it'll be quite popular during March Madness.”
A restaurant named after the date of the Emancipation Proclamation offers guests an upscale, yet casual dining experience.
1863 Restaurant is the brainchild of Chef Claude Rodier, who was the executive chef at Blackie's Restaurant in Washington from 2000 to 2005.
His unique handiwork, such as scallops with grits topped with beet sauce, combine his culinary skill with the essence of the region. The soft texture of the coarsely ground hominy was a surprising fit for the dense flesh of the mussel.
Delicately sweet peach tea is made with peaches grown in Adams County . About 90 percent of the ingredients used in the kitchen are grown locally to ensure freshness and bolster the economy, Mr. Schreiber said.
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