From Austria to Aspen

Michael Hatzfeld, general manager of the Hotel Imperial in Vienna, Austria, will take over the helm at the St. Regis Aspen on Nov. 1.He succeeds Richard McLennan in the high-profile job; McLennan has accepted a post with Starwood Vacation Ownership, a division of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc., which operates both the hotel in Vienna and the St. Regis Aspen.McLennan, a resident of Old Snowmass, will remain based in Aspen, but takes on a regional assignment that involves the new St. Regis Residence Club Aspen and other vacation-ownership properties.

The St. Regis Aspen will reopen in November after a $37 million renovation that includes the conversion of one wing of the hotel into the St. Regis Residence Club, featuring suites available for sale in one-eleventh fractional shares.A new, 15,000-square-foot spa is also being created at the hotel as part of the renovation, and all of the hotel rooms will boast new furnishings.Hatzfeld will “be charged with taking St. Regis Aspen to new levels of service and success,” said Rick Suhl, vice president of operations for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, in a prepared statement.

Hatzfeld is “super nice guy” and very qualified to take over operation of Aspen’s largest luxury hotel, according to McLennan.”I think he will adapt very well to the St. Regis in Aspen,” he said.Hatzfeld has managed the Hotel Imperial since 1999. The hotel has hosted countless dignitaries, heads of state, royalty and celebrities, according to Starwood.

Hatzfeld was born in Texas and raised in Munich, Germany. He is a graduate of the University of Houston and is fluent in English and German.The 25 two- and three-bedroom suites in Club Aspen are expected to open in the first quarter of 2005.Janet Urquhart’s e-mail address is janet@aspentimes.com