BUFFALO, NY - There are now plans for a re-branded, renovated hotel for downtown Buffalo - with a developer who feels he has something to prove.
The Adam's Mark hotel will soon be known as the Buffalo Grand Hotel with the efforts of Toronto developer Harry Stinson.
Stinson says he just finished acquiring the largest conference hotel in the city with eight floors, 500 rooms and 72,000 square feet of meeting space. He says he intends to spend $10 to 15 million to spruce up the lobby and use lighting to help polish its image.
Stinson also wants to upgrade the 24 hour restaurant and remodel the rooms to create a destination hotel. He feels it will provide more room for conferences than the existing Buffalo Niagara Convention center.
Stinson says he actually got the idea to buy and renovate the hotel following an overnight stay in Buffalo, while speaking with city leaders about his plans to help develop the Central Terminal. He admits disappointment as the "sidelined" developer of that project, but feels he can succeed with this hotel project which is an existing business that's making money.
When 2 On Your Side asked about his mixed track record in the Queen City he replied, "Don't write me off man. I know you've had a lot of people come to Buffalo with grand schemes and big ideas and nothing happens. So I'm tarred with that brush. So this was an opportunity to do something real and immediate. To say I'm not kidding. And over the next six months to a year as people experience what we're gonna do to this building, I think they'll start to take it more seriously."
Stinson has hired former Seneca Tower and Hyatt hotel manager, Stephen Fitzmaurice, to run his new hotel. He intends to also provide more training for current employees and hire new staffers.