CVBs

Jack Schripsema has been named president of the Flint Area (Michigan) Convention & Visitors Bureau. Schripsema waspreviously vice-president of sales and marketing at the Traverse City (Michigan) Convention & Visitors Bureau. He succeeds Cheryl DeFrain, who is operations manager of the Flint Area CVB andhad been serving as its interim president.

The San Francisco Travel Association has made two appointments: John Reyes has beennamed executive vice-president and chief customer officer, and Tom Kiely has been promoted toexecutive vice-president of tourism. Reyes was most recently president and CEOof the Monterey County (California) Convention & Visitors Bureau. He was also formerly the president and CEO of Visit Jacksonville in Florida. Kiely who joined the San Francisco Travel Association in 2010, was previously its vice-president of tourism.

The Lisle (Illinois) Convention & Visitors Bureau hasmade two new appointments: Diane Homolka has been named executive director and Robin Friday has been named director ofsales. Homolka, who has been with the CVB for 11 years, was previously itsinterim executive director; before that, she was its marketing and communicationsmanager and also formerly served as business manager and bureau servicesmanager. Friday has 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, and herbackground includes working as director of sales and marketing for Hyatt,Wyndham and Hilton hotels.

Don Skeoch has been named chief marketing officer at LA Inc., the Los Angeles Convention & Visitors Bureau. Skeoch was most recently chief marketing and exhibit development officer at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. He has also worked as vice-president of marketing and sales at Universal Studiosin Hollywood, California.

The Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association has promoted Chris Gahl to vice-president of marketing and communications. Gahl, who has more than 10 years of marketing and communications experience in the convention and tourism industry, was previously the organization's director of communications.

The Fort Worth (Texas) Convention & Visitors Bureau hasnamed Merianne Roth vice-president of marketing communications. Roth most recently worked for the JC Penney Corporation as a publicity director and in consumer brand marketing.

The Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau (DCVB) has appointed Darren Temple assenior vice-president of sales and services. Temple was most recently executive vice-president of global sales for PSAV Presentation Services, a national event-technology provider.

Amanda DePhillips has been named director of marketing at Meet Minneapolis. DePhillips was mostrecently the marketing and public relations manager at metroConnections Inc., anevent management company based in Bloomington, Minnesota. She also formerlyserved as vice-president of communications at Visit St. Paul (Minnesota).

Todd O'Leary has been promoted to director of marketing at Visit Milwaukee (Wisconsin). O'Leary was previously the organization's director of membership, and prior tothat, he was a senior sales manager for Midwest Airlines (which has sincemerged with Frontier Airlines).

The Saratoga (New York) Convention & Tourism Bureau has appointed Mary Jo Janis as director of convention sales. Janis was previously senior sales manager at the Desmond Hotel & Conference Center in Albany, New York. Prior to that, she was conference sales manager at the Gideon Putnam Spa Resort in Saratoga Springs,New York.

The Richmond (Virginia) Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau has made two appointments to its sales and services team. Mary Brown has been named national sales manager and will focus on city wide association and religious markets, and Danielle Fields has been named sales manager and will focus on the association, fraternal and religious markets. Brown was previously an event planner for the CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst) Institute in Charlottesville, Virginia. Fields was formerly the destination sales executive for conventions at the Bryan-College Station (Texas) Convention& Visitors Bureau.

The Tacoma (Washington) Regional Convention & VisitorBureau has appointed Emily Boone as communications coordinator. Boone previouslyworked as a program associate at Voxus Inc., a public relations firm inTacoma.

HOSPITALITY & SUPPLIERS

The InterContinental/New York Times Square has named Andrew Gajary general manager. Gajary, whohas worked for InterContinental Hotels & Resorts since 1997, was previously general manager of the InterContinental/Toronto-Yorkville.

Sheila Gerbig-Hussey has been promoted to general manager of the Outrigger Aina Nalunear Lahaina, Maui, in Hawaii. Gerbig-Hussey was previously the property's assistant general manager. She has been with Outrigger Hotels & Resorts for17 years.

Also in Hawaii, Gregg Lundberg has beenappointed general manager of the Westin Maui Resort & Spa on Ka'anapaliBeach. Lundberg was formerly general manager of the Westin Ka'anapali OceanResort Villas. He has also been general manager of the Westin St. John Resort & Villas in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

The Hotel at Arundel Preserve in Hanover, Maryland, hasappointed Jeff Makhlouf general manager. Makhlouf was previously general manager for the Hilton Garden Inn in Arlington, Virginia.

Abby Morgan has been named director of sales at the Joule Hotel in downtown Dallas. Morganwas previously senior sales manager at Hotel ZaZa/Dallas. Prior to that, she was catering sales manager at what was formerly the Adam's Mark/Dallas (now aSheraton Hotel).

Kristin Thompson has been named director of catering sales and destination services at the Renaissance World Golf Village Resort & Convention Center in St. Augustine, Florida. Thompson previously worked for the Sawgrass Marriott in Ponte Vedra Beach and founded its destination management department.

Cerelle Gooding has been named director of group sales at the Fairmont Orchid on the Big Island of Hawaii. Gooding spent the past six years as director of West Coast sales for the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego. She also formerly worked at the Catamaran Resort Hotel & Spa in San Diego as a senior sales manager responsible for the association market.

The George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston has made two new appointments: Len Valka has been named sales manager, and Ted Bowen has been named sales manager for Texas associations. Valka, who has worked in the hotel industry for the last 16 years, was most recently sales manager at the Hilton/Houston North. Bowen was previously the George R.Brown Convention Center's public relations and marketing manager.

The Mason Inn Conference Center & Hotel, located on thecampus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, has appointed Angela Smart as group sales manager. Smart was most recently national sales manager for Team San Jose in California.

CONSTRUCTION & EXPANSION

In the Chicago suburb of Tinley Park, the Tinley Park Convention Center has completed an expansion project that has doubled the facility's size and added several new amenities.The 120,000-square-foot convention center now offers 70,000 square feet ofevent space, of which 58,100 square feet is contiguous. Features include 18 breakout rooms, which range from 750 to 4,000 square feet; a ballroom that can accommodate up to 2,000 people; and an 18,000-square-foot exhibit hall. It also has a business center, Internet access and audio-visual equipment and is adjacent to a 202-room Holiday Inn, which was renovated in February. 

The Custom Hotel, a Joie de Vivre property near Los Angeles International Airport, has beenrevamped to show off a new design and aesthetic. The 250-room property featuresupdated amenities, a redesigned restaurant and bar, and a total of 9,000 square feet of indoor-outdoor space including a 900-square-foot conference room for up to 75 people and several social lounges.

An $8.5 million rejuvenation project has been completed at the Primm Valley Casino Resorts, which consists of three resort casinos located near each other in Primm, Nevada, just 45 miles south of Las Vegas on Interstate 15. Upgrades include newguest room furnishings, casino floor carpeting and energy-saving LED lightbulbs at Buffalo Bill's Resort & Casino. At the Primm Valley Resort & Casino, there is a new 13,000-square-foot spa and fitness center, flat-screen televisions in its Race & Sports Book, and new furniture, fixtures and décor in all guest rooms. Combined, the resorts offer 2,643 guest rooms, a 21,000-square-foot conference center and a 6,000-seat arena.

The Shore Hotel is scheduled to open this month in Santa Monica, California, steps from the beach and other city attractions. The U-shaped, LEED-certified property will offer 164 guest rooms, event space for up to 160 people, an outdoor pool and patio, a fitness center and two dining options.

The Embassy Suites/St. Louis Downtown is scheduled to open this month adjacent to the America's Center Convention Complex. The 212-suite hotel, located in the city's historic Laurel Building, will offer an indoor swimming pool, a fitness center, a 24-hour business center and 5,000 square feet of meeting space. Matthew Felling was recently appointedas the new hotel's general manager; he was most recently general manager of the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel & Conference Center St. Louis.

AND FINALLY...

Through December, groups who stay at the CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta Resort & Spa in Mexico can involve attendees in a sea turtle rescue programcalled "Secretos del Mar." The property has enlisted a local biologist to show visitors how to comb the nearby beach so that mother turtles have a groomed surface on which to lay their eggs. Resort staff later transport the eggs to a sea turtle nursery—away from the resort's busy beach—and when the hatchlings emerge, guests can participate in freeing them at the beach. The entire process, from the time eggs are laid to the turtles' eventual hatching and return to sea, occurs from late June through December.

The award-winning CasaMagna Marriott Puerto Vallarta features 433 guest rooms and suites and more than 9,000 square feet of indoor meeting space for groups of up to 1,100, as well as additional outdoor event space. For more information, visit puertovallartamarriott.com.