Hotel ZaZa promises to bring a new feel to the Dallas atmosphere
Charles Givens isn’t worried. The Oklahoma City developer who specializes in office buildings, condominiums and retirement communities boasts that his Hotel ZaZa, taking shape near McKinney and Maple, will have a 72 percent occupancy rate when it opens in October. This despite a slump in the boutique hotel market, which was off some 16 percent in 2001 as measured by revenue per available room, according to The Wall Street Journal. This stat doesn’t faze Givens. “I wouldn’t call this one a boutique hotel,” he says. “Boutique’s not the right word, and hip’s not the right word. I’m not sure what it is. Lifestyle hotel, possibly.” Givens points out that his hotel has 146 rooms with meeting space, while boutique hotels are typically 50 to 70 rooms with small lounges. And while most boutique hotels tend to be dusky, edgy and snooty (à la Phillipe Starck), Givens describes his hotel as very comfortable and “real sexy and sensual. Read More