NIAGARA FALLS -- If the shuttered Hotel Niagara in the heart of the city tourist district is to be restored, it's going to take more time.
The bank that holds the mortgage, after a failed attempt by a Texas couple to renovate the 12-story lodging on Rainbow Boulevard, kept control of the property during a foreclosure auction this afternoon at City Hall.
Several potential bidders who showed up for the auction -- including Falls hotelier and former gubernatorial candidate Carl P. Paladino -- were unwilling to place a bid at or above the $1 million minimum offer the State Bank of Texas was willing to take during the public proceeding.
The bank lost $3.29 million as part of the $4.6 million purchase in 2007 by Houston-based Amidee Hotel Niagara, a limited liability corporation owned by James T. Cook Jr. and his wife, Judith B. Cook.
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Thursday, January 6, 2011
Denny’s shooting culminates in $79.5 mil lawsuit
A 2007 shooting at Denny’s Restaurant in Kent is culminating in a $79.5 million lawsuit and the subpoenaing of the company’s top brass to a Seattle courtroom.
In the trial, which starts Monday, Seattle attorney Ron Perey is representing Steve Tolenoa, a Kent resident who was left a quadriplegic as a result of the Jan. 21 shooting spree. In addition to the $79 million for Tolenoa’s estimated loss in pay and continued medical needs, Perey also is seeking $530,000 in damages for customer Lisa Beltran-Walker, who was shot in the knee, and her husband Carl Walker, for emotional distress and medical bills.
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In the trial, which starts Monday, Seattle attorney Ron Perey is representing Steve Tolenoa, a Kent resident who was left a quadriplegic as a result of the Jan. 21 shooting spree. In addition to the $79 million for Tolenoa’s estimated loss in pay and continued medical needs, Perey also is seeking $530,000 in damages for customer Lisa Beltran-Walker, who was shot in the knee, and her husband Carl Walker, for emotional distress and medical bills.
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CES, adult conventions send Las Vegas hotel room rates soaring
Two of Las Vegas’ largest annual conventions — the Consumer Electronics Show and Adult Entertainment Expo — are scheduled to open today and have given Strip room rates a major boost for the weekend.
That is, if guests can even find an open hotel room this weekend. Most of the major hotels, including Palms, Caesars Palace, Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and Wynn Las Vegas, are sold out for most days this weekend.
Guests trying to book last-minute rooms will find average daily rates like $600 at Palazzo, $566 at Bellagio and $525 at Aria and the Venetian. They’ll find less expensive room rates at second-tier hotels such as $448 at MGM Grand and $420 at Mandalay Bay.
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That is, if guests can even find an open hotel room this weekend. Most of the major hotels, including Palms, Caesars Palace, Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas and Wynn Las Vegas, are sold out for most days this weekend.
Guests trying to book last-minute rooms will find average daily rates like $600 at Palazzo, $566 at Bellagio and $525 at Aria and the Venetian. They’ll find less expensive room rates at second-tier hotels such as $448 at MGM Grand and $420 at Mandalay Bay.
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Wednesday, January 5, 2011
Owner of 44 Pizza Huts around La. closed over lawsuit
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The owner of 44 Pizza Hut restaurants in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas said Wednesday he has shut them down because of a legal dispute with the parent company.
Dallas-based Pizza Hut Inc. filed a lawsuit in a Texas federal court earlier this week against Larry Lundy and Lundy Enterprises.
A spokesman for Pizza Hut said Wednesday that it was developing a fund to help about 1,000 employees out of work because of the shutdown, and planned to build new restaurants in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas.
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Dallas-based Pizza Hut Inc. filed a lawsuit in a Texas federal court earlier this week against Larry Lundy and Lundy Enterprises.
A spokesman for Pizza Hut said Wednesday that it was developing a fund to help about 1,000 employees out of work because of the shutdown, and planned to build new restaurants in the New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas.
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McDonald's Japan sales in 2010 hit record high for 5th year
Image via Wikipedia
TOKYO — Sales at McDonald’s Holdings Co (Japan) Ltd’s own and franchise stores climbed to an all-time high in 2010 for the fifth consecutive year, rising 2% from a year earlier to 542.7 billion yen, according to a preliminary report released by the company Wednesday. Business was strong partly because of brisk sales of the Big America brand of hamburgers introduced in January, McDonald’s said.
But the company’s President Eiko Harada warned that the restaurant industry is facing hard times ahead, the severity of which is ‘‘unforeseeable,’’ when discussing the business outlook for this year at a press conference.
In December, sales on a same-store basis jumped 11.6% from a year earlier and the number of customers leapt 8.9% while spending per customer grew 2.5%.
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Twin Peaks Expects Bust-Out Year of Expansion in 2011
DALLAS, Jan. 5, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- On the heels of its strongest year to date, as well as its crowning as one of America's hottest concepts by Nation's Restaurant News, Twin Peaks is launching an aggressive franchise expansion campaign to nearly double the number of locations of its popular restaurants in 2011.
"Based on the exceptional success we are experiencing with both existing and new restaurants, we are convinced that now is the time to be even more aggressive in our efforts to take the Twin Peaks concept into new markets," said CEO Randy DeWitt, who founded Twin Peaks with Scott Gordon in 2005.
Since the original opened in the Dallas suburb of Lewisville, Twin Peaks has expanded to a dozen restaurants in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, and it's aiming to add 10 more by the end of 2011.
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"Based on the exceptional success we are experiencing with both existing and new restaurants, we are convinced that now is the time to be even more aggressive in our efforts to take the Twin Peaks concept into new markets," said CEO Randy DeWitt, who founded Twin Peaks with Scott Gordon in 2005.
Since the original opened in the Dallas suburb of Lewisville, Twin Peaks has expanded to a dozen restaurants in Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico, and it's aiming to add 10 more by the end of 2011.
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Toby Keith Takes His Restaurant Chain to Ohio
Image via WikipediaToby Keith rocked in the New Year at his I Love This Bar & Grill restaurant in Mesa, Arizona, and just a few days later announced he's expanding the chain to Cincinnati, Ohio.The new restaurant -- like the others of the same name -- will be a combination restaurant and entertainment venue with live music and dancing, reports KyPost.com. Patrons can expect dozens of high-definition televisions, an outdoor patio, and an 88-foot guitar centerpiece. Both local and national entertainment will perform six days a week.
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Ruby Tuesday Reports Positive Same-Restaurant Sales of 4.2%
Image via WikipediaHighlights for the second quarter of 2011 compared to the second quarter of 2010 include: - Positive same-restaurant sales of 4.2% at Company-owned Ruby Tuesday restaurants
- Restaurant-level operating margin of 15.1%, compared to 13.7% for the prior year, an improvement of 140 basis points
- Net income of $4.6 million, compared to prior-year net income of $0.4 million
- Diluted earnings per share of $0.07, compared to diluted earnings per share of $0.01 for the prior year
- Negotiated a new five-year, $320 million revolving credit facility with attractive pricing and flexibility, which closed on December 1st
- Book debt to EBITDA ratio of 2.03 represents an improvement over the prior-year ratio of 2.57
Actor Gary Collins Accused of Felony 'Dine and Dash'
JACKSON, Miss. -- Actor and former TV host Gary Collins was in a south Mississippi jail early Wednesday, charged with a felony after being accused of leaving a restaurant without paying his bill, police said.
Rodney McGilvary, assistant chief of the Biloxi Police Department, confirmed that Collins was charged Tuesday night with defrauding an innkeeper. He was taken to the Harrison County Detention Center in Gulfport and held on a $5,000 bond.
Authorities said Collins was expected to face a court hearing during the day Wednesday.
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Rodney McGilvary, assistant chief of the Biloxi Police Department, confirmed that Collins was charged Tuesday night with defrauding an innkeeper. He was taken to the Harrison County Detention Center in Gulfport and held on a $5,000 bond.
Authorities said Collins was expected to face a court hearing during the day Wednesday.
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New York Tourism Hit Record High in 2010, Mayor Says
Despite the lingering effects of the recession, more people visited New York City in 2010 than in any other year, according to an estimate Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg announced on Tuesday.
Speaking in the conservatory at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Mr. Bloomberg said the city drew 48.7 million tourists last year, which puts the city back on track to reaching his goal of attracting 50 million visitors annually by next year. The estimated increase of almost 7 percent came after tourism in the city dipped to about 45.5 million visitors in 2009.
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Speaking in the conservatory at Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Mr. Bloomberg said the city drew 48.7 million tourists last year, which puts the city back on track to reaching his goal of attracting 50 million visitors annually by next year. The estimated increase of almost 7 percent came after tourism in the city dipped to about 45.5 million visitors in 2009.
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Bankrupt Se San Diego hotel may be put up for sale
The financially troubled owner of the tony Sè San Diego hotel, dogged by controversy since before it opened two years ago, wants to put the downtown high rise up for sale.
The upscale boutique hotel, along with an adjacent building in which the House of Blues is located, could fetch up to $50 million, according to one Southern California broker, although that is significantly less than the $150 million cost to develop the high-profile project
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The upscale boutique hotel, along with an adjacent building in which the House of Blues is located, could fetch up to $50 million, according to one Southern California broker, although that is significantly less than the $150 million cost to develop the high-profile project
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Waldorf-Astoria Bitten By THIRD Bedbug Lawsuit
Image via WikipediaThe Waldorf-Astoria has been hit with a third lawsuit by a guest who claims she was ravaged by bedbugs during a night at the tony hotel. Svetlana Tendler, a doctor who's currently a stay-at-home mom, visited the Waldorf during a trip to NYC with her family in August 2007. That makes this the earliest known incident of bedbug biting at the hotel, and suggests the Waldorf has been struggling with an infestation for much longer than previously believed. (The other two lawsuits are the result of bedbug bites from 2010.) Tendler wants $10 million from the hotel to compensate her for what the bedbugs did to her, and says she needs plastic surgery!Read More:
Hyatt brings labor contract negotiations to YouTube
Labor-management battles, once fought on picket lines and behind closed doors, are now being waged in cyberspace. Borrowing from the union's playbook, Hyatt laid out its latest offer to hotel workers on YouTube last week. Hyatt also played the video continuously on television monitors in employee cafeterias of properties in Chicago. Hotel workers said the video, which featured actors speaking in English, Cantonese and Spanish, caused a stir by noting that a $1,000 employee bonus expired Dec. 20. "They put it right in front of the cafeteria in a continuous loop. Every day. Every hour. People are just sick and tired of it," said Cristian Saez, 36, a waiter at Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. "The fun part of mocking the videos is over, and now it's just insulting."
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