New management of Marriott hotel at KCI plans a big upgrade

The Marriott hotel at Kansas City International Airport is changing hands and will be getting an expensive upgrade.

The City Council on Thursday approved a new lease agreement that moves control of the operation from Marriott’s corporate headquarters to franchisee Grady Hotel Investments LLC. The group also operates the Crowne Plaza hotel at 1301 Wyandotte St. in downtown Kansas City.

The deal keeps the 384-room hotel under the Marriott flag and provides a lessee with a good reputation, said David Long, deputy aviation director responsible for properties and commercial development.

The council had to approve the new lease because the hotel is on city airport property. The city gets more than $600,000 annually in rent and fees from the hotel’s revenue.

Long told the council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that the new ownership group has committed to a $16 million upgrade of the hotel, which includes redoing the lobby, kitchen and banquet spaces. The improvements must be finished by Dec. 31, 2018, but Long expects they will be done before that.

The group has a 20-year franchise agreement to operate as a Marriott.

“It’s a very good deal for the city,” Long said.

Last week, the owner of the 347-room Hilton Kansas City Airport hotel announced the completion of a $10 million renovation of the property, which is near KCI.

This story was originally published May 14, 2015 at 4:01 PM with the headline "New management of Marriott hotel at KCI plans a big upgrade."