The elegant Grand Ballroom Foyer at Hyatt Regency Bellevue, part of the hotel's $185 million expansion completed in July 2009. — Photo by Hyatt

BELLEVUE, Wash | Today, Kemper Development Company and Hyatt Regency Bellevue announced the completion of their much anticipated second-tower expansion. Located on Seattle’s Eastside, just nine miles from downtown, Hyatt Regency Bellevue now offers a total of 733 guest rooms and suites and more than 60,000 square feet of premium event space, including the third largest ballroom in Washington state.

“Hyatt Regency Bellevue has a twenty-year history of providing first-class accommodations and event space. The new $185 million Olympic Tower expansion will continue our heritage as the go-to choice for Northwest accommodations,” said General Manager Rolf Osterwalder.

Adding to the already distinguished ambiance of the hotel, the expansion includes the addition of a welcoming two-story Koa wood accent wall to the hotel’s signature Wintergarden lobby space, as well as a curved, Ambar stone grand staircase. The new tower is also decorated with artwork from well-known local and national artists. Featured artists include Jessica Bodner who designed the ten-foot tall antique bronze “Beehive Chandelier,” and Amber Brookman who created the colorful and abstract sixty-piece “Primal Squares.” In addition, the hotel now features a prominent 9-by-12-foot oil on canvas commissioned by Michael Schultheis.

The crown jewel of the Olympic Tower is the distinctively elegant Grand Ballroom. Gold, brown and deep Chinese reds form the predominant color palette for this 17,745-square-foot space, which features soaring 23-foot ceilings and 48 custom drop-glass chandeliers. Offering unparalleled setup flexibility, the Grand Ballroom is equipped with state-of-the-art technology, 58 hang points capable of holding up to 1,500 pounds apiece and 90 Mbps bandwidth for both wired and wireless high-speed Internet, which is also now available throughout the hotel. Additional event space highlights include:

  • The Evergreen Ballroom: This 13,755-square-foot ballroom exudes a warm, luxurious ambiance complete with high end finishes and custom light fixtures. The ballroom foyer features oversized 12-foot, two-inch exterior “elephant doors,” making the foyer space ideal for events requiring easy street access for large item setups.
  • The Executive Auditorium: This sloped 135-seat space is ideal for presentations or seminars, and is equipped with THX® surround sound and individual power stations. Guest speakers can relax before their presentations in the adjoining green room.
  • Seven Unique Conference Suites: Conveniently located on the first floor near the Auditorium, these spacious suites offer all the luxury of a standard guest room, with the added space and benefit of a separate parlor area, complete with a six-person conference table, wet bar and wall-mounted flat-screen TV. Averaging 726 square feet, each suite also features 10-foot ceilings in both the bedroom and parlor.

In addition to new meeting spaces, the Olympic Tower brings 351 all-new guest rooms (for a hotel total of 733), including two new VIP suites. All VIP suites at Hyatt Regency Bellevue boast more than 1,000 square feet of living space, including the brand new 1,500-square-foot Chairman Suite. Stylishly designed, this spacious suite features two separate sitting areas and a large dining area with attached powder room, a kitchen with refrigerator and microwave, and a master bedroom complete with walk-in closet and oversized Italian marble soaking tub.

The $185 million marks one of the largest hotel expansions in Northwest history. More than a dozen major business, residential and retail projects are currently underway in the downtown core, underscoring the growing popularity of this Pacific Northwest urban oasis. Comprised of two towers, the current Cascade Tower and the newly opened Olympic Tower, Hyatt Regency Bellevue is the largest hotel in Bellevue.

The official hotel opening was commemorated on July 31st with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and private reception attended by key local officials, executives from Kemper Development Company, the owners and developers behind the Hyatt Regency Bellevue expansion project, as well as representatives from Hyatt Hotels Corporation. The hotel is offering a celebratory “733 Hours Rate” for overnight stays in any of the hotel’s 733 rooms for as low as $73.30 on Fridays and Saturdays throughout the month of August 2009. Reservations for individual and group travel/events may be made online at www.bellevue.hyatt.com or by calling Hyatt Hotels at 1-800-223-1234.

About Hyatt Regency Bellevue | Hyatt Regency Bellevue is a AAA four-diamond hotel situated on Seattle’s Eastside, in the heart of downtown Bellevue, Washington. Nestled between Lake Washington and the Cascade Mountain Range, the hotel is part of The Bellevue Collection, the Northwest’s leading shopping, dining and entertainment destination, and offers premier services and amenities to both business and leisure travelers. Recently completing a $185 million expansion, the hotel offers groups more than 60,000 square feet of flexible state-of-the-art event space – from the third largest ballroom in the state to an intimate 12-person boardroom – 733 luxuriously redesigned guestrooms, an expansive 7,000-square-foot workout complex and a comfortable, spacious lobby. For more information, please visit .

About Hyatt Hotels Corporation | Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family in 45 countries strive to make a difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by providing authentic hospitality. The company’s subsidiaries manage, franchise, own and develop hotels and resorts under the Hyatt®, Park Hyatt® , Andaz™, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place®, and Hyatt Summerfield Suites™ brand names and have locations under development on five continents. Hyatt Vacation Ownership, Inc., a Hyatt Hotels Corporation subsidiary, develops and operates vacation ownership properties under the Hyatt Vacation Club® brand. As of June 30, 2009, the company’s worldwide portfolio consisted of 413 properties. For more information, please visit .

Caitlin Haedicke
Duo PR for Hyatt
(206) 957-8305
Hyatt