Irvine’s Radisson Plaza Hotel Becomes O.C. Airport Hilton

The Radisson Plaza Hotel Orange County Airport will be renamed the Orange County Airport Hilton on Monday, formally marking a recent ownership change at the troubled hotel.

The hotel was purchased in February by EquiStar Hotel Investors of Washington. Its subsidiary, CapStar Hotels, a leading Hilton franchiser, has announced a $2.5-million renovation, which will include the hotel’s exterior, guest rooms and corporate meeting facilities. The renovation, to begin immediately, is slated for completion by summer.

“We are delighted to be able to bring the Hilton airport product line to Irvine,” said Lou Ann Jordan, general manager of the new Airport Hilton.

EquiStar’s purchase ended a turbulent period that began in 1989, when businessman George Yao paid $7 million cash and took out a $19-million loan to buy the Radisson Plaza. Yao’s group flirted with bankruptcy and narrowly avoided a planned foreclosure before the hotel was purchased by EquiStar in February.

CapStar operates 51 hotels, including the Santa Barbara Inn, the Inn at Morro Bay and nine others in California. In Orange County, it operates the Quality Suites in Santa Ana and a Residence Inn in Orange.