Lord Beaverbrook reopens after floods

FREDERICTON, NB—Operations are back to normal at the Crowne Plaza Lord Beaverbrook Hotel in downtown Fredericton following last month’s flooding of the Saint John River.

“Everything is wonderful. We are above water, and just have a little bit of cleanup at the basement level,” general manager Walter Lauffer told CLN in late May.

The majestic Saint John has always been a defining feature of the recently renovated hotel. However that same scenic location is also squarely in the flood plain of the powerful river.  On April 30, 200 guests were evacuated from the hotel as flood waters reached record levels in Fredericton.

On May 7, the hotel  reopened at full service for the first time in seven days as the clean-up continued from record-breaking floods in New Brunswick’s capital city.

“It is a testament to the emergency efforts of the city and the province, the leadership of the hotel’s management team and dedication of the staff that the Crowne Plaza Lord Beaverbrook reopened [so quickly], virtually free of any damage to guest related areas of the hotel,” said Glenn Squires, CEO of  management company Pacrim Hospitality Services Inc. (PHSI).

“The initial concern for the hotel was our guests and their safety and comfort…yet once each was settled, the 24-7 battle against relentless rising water became the focus of the Crowne Plaza team,” Squires said. 

Even Prime Minister Stephen Harper could not be accommodated when he travelled to view damage in the area.

Lauffer and regional chief engineer Ron Hebert led the round the clock efforts of the staff of 120 people who kept guests and clients advised of the status of the closure and were determined to avoid significant property damage if at all possible.
 
“Certainly it was an exercise in team building,” said Lauffer. “It could have been much worse.

“In teams of 20, everyone from food and beverage and housekeeping staff to the sales team manned pumps and generators, moved furniture to higher ground and sand-bagged as required to ensure the Crowne Plaza was in a position to re-open [after just seven days] without any long-term damage to guests’ comfort and services,” Lauffer added.

All guest rooms, meeting areas, catering and dining areas of the hotel re-opened May 7 and the new saltwater swimming pool and the full service Arabesque Spa opened later in the week.

“Even the parking lot, which spent days under 1.9 meters of water, has been cleared and swept.”

The hotel is owned by Aquilini Investments of Vancouver, British Columbia, “the principals of which have expressed their appreciation and admiration to the staff,” Squires added.

Lauffer indicated that working on-site, it was clearly the “amazing combined efforts” of the City of Fredericton, the provincial Environment Department, the Emergency Measures Organization (EMO) and NB Power that managed a dangerous and difficult situation.

Pacrim Hospitality Services Inc. (www.pacrimhospitality.com) is one of Canada’s largest, privately-owned hotel management companies with a portfolio of some 60 hotels throughout Canada and the United States totalling more than 6,000 hotel rooms and suites. Pacrim Hospitality is the preferred management company of Holloway Lodging REIT (www.hlreit.com) and is based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Pacrim manages 19 hotels in Atlantic Canada, seven of them in New Brunswick.