Hotels in Texas get an influx of business, scientists offer their perspective on indoor dining in New York, and Black Artists + Designs Guild debuts a gorgeous product collection with S. Harris. All that and more in this week’s Five on Friday.
Houston hotels offer refuge—for those who can snag a room
The Houston Marriott West Loop by The Galleria, photo courtesy of Marriott International
With scores of Texans without power and running water following Winter Storm Uri this past week, Houston residents have turned to hotels in hopes of some relief. A staff member at the Houston Marriott West Loop by The Galleria told a Houston Chronicle reporter that they were “sold out,” with the paper also reporting that Marriott and Hilton apps showed no vacancies in the area. Though a much-needed business boom amid the COVID-19 pandemic, local hotels are struggling to replenish supplies and are still short staffed.
Scientists weigh in on the safety of indoor dining in New York
The AvroKO-designed Quality Bistro in Midtown Manhattan; photo by Christian Harder
Last weekend, in the midst of falling COVID cases and hospitalizations, indoor dining reopened in New York for the first time since before the holidays at 25 percent capacity. Gothamist spoke to two scientists—public health advisor to Mayor Bill de Blasio Dr. Jay Varma and Columbia University infectious disease specialist Jeffrey Shaman—who offered advice to diners, such as keeping the party small and making sure that pandemic regulations are being observed. Overall, however, both agreed that the reopening was premature due to emerging COVID-19 variants.
S. Harris partners with Black Artists + Designers Guild for new collection
S. Harris announced its new Orejen collection this week, for which the company partnered with the Black Artists + Designers Guild (BADG). With designs inspired by the African diaspora, the fabrics, trimmings, and wallcoverings take cues from Bhutan’s mountains, Zanzibar’s shores, and even traditions in New Zealand and Papua New Guinea. BADG members who worked on the collection include founder Malene Barnett, Rayman Boozer, Beth Diana Smith, Linda Hayslett, and Erin Shakoor.
The One11 is the first new hotel in the French Quarter in 50 years
Photo courtesy of One11 Hotel
Found in a former sugar factory, One11 Hotel is the first brand new property to open in New Orleans’ historic French Quarter in half a century. The city passed a moratorium on new hotels in the 85-block area in 1969, but One11 gained approval by working within an existing structure, with no demolition needed, Travel + Leisure reports. Opened this past December, New York-based Dash Design is responsible for the interiors.
Marriott’s Arne Sorenson passes away at 62
Photo courtesy of Marriott International
Marriott International CEO and president, and certified industry legend, Arne Sorenson passed away at the age of 62 on Monday after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. Sorenson was only the company’s third-ever CEO, and the first outside of the eponymous family. Having joined in 1996, two decades later he would help catapult Marriott International into the world’s largest hotel chain with the acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts in 2016. In 2018, guest editor Ian Schrager’s curation for HD’s November issue included an extensive interview with Sorenson, which you can read here.
