Landmark Bay Area Hotel Will Undergo Restoration

San Francisco’s landmark Fairmont Hotel is in the middle of $72 million worth of major surgery designed to update the posh inn while keeping it true to its 1907 architectural roots.

“This restoration is a significant chapter in the hotel’s evolution,” said Edward E. Mace, president and CEO of Fairmont Hotel Management LP, which manages the Nob Hill property.

The renovations began last September and are expected to be complete by September 2000.

The hotel has been dumping the dark, heavy 1940s decor and replacing it with contemporary pastel-colored furniture and carpet.

So far, only one of the hotel’s 600 guest rooms has been fully renovated.

The new room color schemes will be mostly beige and gray tones to replace the current hodgepodge of hues.

Guest room bathrooms have been enlarged and outfitted with new marble tile.

The Swig family owned the hotel until 1993, when Saudi investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Alsaud bought 50 percent.

In March 1998, Maritz, Wolff & Co., a Los Angeles-based investment group that buys luxury hotel and resort properties, bought out the Swigs.

Last month, Canadian Pacific Hotels & Resorts Inc. of Toronto took a 67 percent controlling interest in Fairmont Hotel Management.

The new management company will be called Fairmont Hotels and Resorts Inc., and it will manage 35 properties in the United States, Mexico and Canada.

Guest room rates will probably rise as a result of the new amenities.

David Weiner, director of sales and marketing, said that rates are between $189 to $339 per night.

He estimated they may go to $239 to $400 per night.