Hotels

NEW YORK CITY-Lance T. Shaner has given up his quest to acquire a 51% stake in Interstate Hotels, thereby leaving one less obstacle in the path toward a merger between Interstate and MeriStar Hotels & Resorts.

DENVER-The December opening of Black Hawk Casino by Hyatt is credited with the state's 43 casinos generating a record $63.6 million in net proceeds in March. Black Hawk's 20 casinos post the lion's share.

ORLANDO-The 400 members of Teamsters Local 385 are pinning their hopes on a federal mediator to determine if a new three-year contract that doesn't guarantee a 40-hour work week is legal. The workers say they will strike without a contract.

FAIRFAX, VA-A new Hilton Garden Inn opens, offering 149 rooms and about 6,000 sf of meeting room space. The endeavor cost just over $15 million, and takes the list of Hilton Garden Inn brand hotels in the US over the 125 mark.

ATLANTA-The locally based American arm of British-based Six Continents PLC is putting the former Tishman Hotel Corp. executive in charge of Six Continents' growth and development of all company brands in the western states. Watkins will be based in Phoenix.

LOS ANGELES-Juergen Bartels, CEO of the London-based Le Meridien Hotels and Resorts, told a small crowd gathered in the Garden Room of his Le Meridien at Beverly Hills that the independent luxury hotel group has its sights set on becoming the number-one brand in the international hotel trade by 2004.

DENVER-Sage Hospitality Resources president, chief executive officer and co-founder Walter Isenberg replaces Coors Brewing Co. vice president of public affairs Al Timothy as chairman of the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau.

ORLANDO-The executive vice president for sales and travel operations at Walt Disney Parks & Resorts and his colleagues at the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau, are racing the clock to rejuvenate the area's sagging hospitality industry.