Westin Colonnade Coral Gables changes flags, completes $18M renovation

The Westin Colonnade in Coral Gables has dropped Starwood’s Westin brand and is now part of its Tribute portfolio. 

Pebblebrook Hotel Trust converted the property into the Hotel Colonnade following an $18 million renovation, the company announced on Tuesday.

Pebblebrook bought the 157-key hotel in late 2014 for $59 million. It’s located at 180 Aragon Avenue, in the heart of the downtown Coral Gables.

Coral Gables founder and developer George Merrick built the Colonnade in the 1920s. Its original features include vaulted ceilings and a grand staircase in the lobby, now centered around a stained glass rosary-style window and Murano glass chandeliers, according to a press release. The hotel also added a lobby bar and a game room with a pool table, shuffleboard, TVs and a bar.

Dawson Design Associates, which handled the renovation, added wood floors and stainless steel pedestal beds, new sofas and smoked glass desks to the rooms.

The hotel fronts Miracle Mile, Aragon Avenue and Ponce de Leon Boulevard, so it’s in the center of the Gables’ streetscape project, which is widening sidewalks, replacing trees and streetlights, and replacing angled parking space to  parallel parking spaces on Miracle Mile. The $21 million project, currently under construction, is said to have impacted businesses on the Mile.

Pebblebrook made headlines earlier this year when it sold the former Viceroy Miami, now the W Miami, for $64.5 million to Al Rayyan Tourism Investment Company. Now, the Coral Gables hotel is its only property in South Florida. – Katherine Kallergis