Hyatt Regency New Orleans

The hotel received extensive damage during Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, where all of the windows of the hotel were blown out due to severe winds, and water and debris were blown into the guestrooms and atrium lobby. There was feces and urine in the lobby, shattered glass everywhere, backed up toilets, and extreme heat, as the air conditioning did not work due to the generator failure.[1] As a result, the guests were evacuated to the ballrooms, along with stranded city residents. On August 31, a convoy of food and supplies provided by Hyatt hotels in Atlanta and Houston arrived. The hotel provided shelter for New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, the New Orleans Police Department and Fire Department, the Louisiana National Guard, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and the Army Corps of Engineers.[2] On September 2, 2005, the approximately 900 hotel guests were evacuated by bus or by car. No guests were suffering from major illnesses or injuries at the time of evacuation.[3]

As a result of the damage sustained during Katrina, the hotel remained closed for six years afterwards. The previous hotel owners, Chicago-based Strategic Hotels and Resorts Inc., along with other investors announced in early 2006 a plan to redevelop the area around the Superdome (including the adjacent hotel) into a performance art park called the "National Jazz Center". The plan, designed in concept by Pritzker Award-winning architect Thom Mayne, was later abandoned.

Poydras Properties Hotel Holdings acquired the Hyatt from Strategic Hotels & Resorts Inc. for $32 million in 2007.[4]

On February 20, 2009, the State Bond Commission approved $225 million in special low-cost bonds to help renovate the Hyatt Regency.[5]

Hyatt issued a statement in August 2010 announcing a redevelopment effort carrying a price tag of $275 million. The redesign of the 32-story building, just next door to the Louisiana Superdome, called for 200,000 square feet (19,000 m²) of meeting and exhibition space, two restaurants, two bars, and a coffee bar. The hotel reopened on October 19, 2011.[6]

The hotel’s reopening in October 2011 revealed several major changes to its interior, and strategic technological additions.[7]

The storm-battered area around the newly rebranded Mercedes-Benz Superdome experienced major construction, renovation, and overall economic changes following the 2005 Hurricane Katrina, which continued to be supported by the rebuilt Hyatt Regency. The Central Business District’s post-disaster development has yielded both Champions Square, the sports district, and the currently under-construction Biotech District. The Hyatt will anchor these new developments by providing over 1,000 guest rooms and 200,000 square feet (19,000 m²) of convention space for visitors. The entrance to the Hyatt Regency also faces the newly constructed Loyola Streetcar line, which provides access to the French Quarter and rest of the Central Business District (CBD).