Hilton Anchorage Update:

On Thursday January 26, 2017, Housekeeping manager Ivan Tellis announced to the housekeeping department that Holland America Cruise line will not be using the Hilton Anchorage Hotel to lodge guests this summer.  Holland America had been a regular customer of the hotel.

Laundry room flood December 12, 2016

On December 12, 2016, the laundry room flooded at the Hilton Anchorage. It also flooded three times in 2015.

This video shows water falling from the ceiling and accumulating on the floor, while electrical equipment can be heard still in operation.

New lobby leak October 2016

Kitchen grease, chemicals, and women’s restroom leak October 2016

Half-lit Hilton Logo

This picture of the Hilton Anchorage was taken on October 19, 2016.

$10k of merchandise stolen from locked room!

On 6/08/2016 a Columbia Sportswear representative reported to Anchorage police that $10k worth of merchandise was stolen out of a locked conference room. Read more.

In April and August leaks in the lobby ceiling caused water to spill onto the lobby floor.

April 2016

August 2016

Rooms 824, 816, and 631 under repair for mold. July, 2016.

As Columbia Sussex’s Hilton Anchorage Debt Nears Maturity UNITE HERE Draws Attention to Hotel Conditions for Prospective Lenders

July 26, 2016

NEW YORK–UNITE HERE released its second report today for prospective lenders who might consider refinancing the debt of the Columbia Sussex Corporation (CSC)-owned Hilton Anchorage Hotel, which matures in March 2017. The report provides lenders with information about conditions at the hotel, as well as recent developments around debt at other properties in the CSC portfolio. It details that:

• The Hilton Anchorage has been combatting persistent mold and conditions conducive to mold growth at the hotel since 2014. On April 1, 2016, a leak sprung from around a light fixture in the hotel’s lobby causing water to spill down onto the lobby floor, and the hotel reported repairing water damage in some rooms as a result of a January 2016 earthquake that struck the Anchorage area. The hotel also has asbestos and lead in various building material found throughout the hotel that must be taken into account whenever construction work is performed.
• CSC sold what had previously been the Marriott Hotel and Convention Center in Oklahoma City to its lender Wells Fargo at a sheriff’s sale in December 2015, after Wells Fargo initiated a foreclosure action against the property in Oklahoma state court in 2012. In December 2014, the court-appointed receiver reported that mold was prevalent at the hotel, and Wells Fargo amended its lawsuit in May 2015 to seek damages for alleged remediation costs. A decree of foreclosure was entered in October 2015.
• The CSC-owned Marriott Phoenix Airport loan was reported to have been transferred to special servicing on 9/3/15 due to what was described as “imminent default.” The loan had a 6/1/2016 maturity date and a balance of around $61 million. On 7/5/2016, it was reported that the loan was not paid off at its June maturity date and foreclosure is being pursued.
• A number of CSC loans were recently on a Watch List and being monitored by special servicers. One of these hotels, the DoubleTree Orlando Airport was acquired in June 2016 by GF Management which reportedly plans to “undertake over $8 million worth of renovations.”
• In 2012 CSC lost the Richmond Marriott West in Richmond, VA. CSC had purchased the property in 2005, but by November 2012 CSC had stopped making its loan payments. The property had reportedly not been refurbished since it opened in 2001.

Potential lenders will find the report useful in assessing whether to refinance the Hilton Anchorage’s debt, particularly in light of what may become a challenging financial environment for the hotel industry.

Read the report: http://unitehere.org/wp-content/uploads/LenderReport2.pdf

UNITE HERE is a labor union that represents 270,000 working people across Canada and the United States. Its members work in the hotel, gaming, food service, manufacturing, textile, distribution, laundry, transportation, and airport industries. UNITE HERE Local 878 represents workers at the Hilton Anchorage where there is currently an active labor dispute.

 

Elevator Malfunction Litigation

On September 8, 2015, a lawsuit was filed against CSC and two other defendants over an elevator incident that occurred at the Hilton Anchorage in September 2013. The plaintiff alleges that, while attending an event at the hotel, she suffered various injuries after the elevator descended abruptly and she was trapped.[1] In answering the plaintiff’s allegations, CSC wrote that it “admits that while she was riding the elevator it stopped before arriving at her intended destination and the doors did not open,” but the company “denies that the elevator ‘plunged’ from the 14th floor to the 5th floor or that the elevator experienced a ‘free fall’ or anything of that sort.”[2] The case remains in litigation.

[1] Roberta Urena v. Schindler Elevator Corporation, Columbia Sussex, Otis Elevator Company, (U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska Case Number 3:15-cv-00223-RRB, complaint filed 09/08/15).
[2] Roberta Urena v. Schindler Elevator Corporation, Columbia Sussex, Otis Elevator Company, (U.S. District Court for the District of Alaska Case Number 3:15-cv-00223-RRB, complaint filed 09/08/15); ECF No. 10, ¶ 5.

Pictures of Mold in Guest Room 727, February 2016

In February 2016, another guest room was observed under repair for the apparent effects of mold:

 

 

Cracks in the walls after January 2016 earthquake

On January 24, 2016, a 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck the Anchorage area, causing damage to the Hilton Anchorage consisting mostly of cracked ceilings in guest rooms and bathrooms. The hotel reported “wet carpet” and/or “water damages on wallpaper” in a number of rooms. As of March 28, 2016, the hotel reported that numerous repairs had by then been effectuated. This is the most current information in the union’s possession.

 

May 13, 2016

Asbestos & lead at Hilton Anchorage hotel

Dear Hilton Anchorage Customer:

We have previously contacted you about the Anchorage Hilton’s efforts to combat mold at the hotel. Now we are contacting you about asbestos and lead…

Read the letter.

 

February 25, 2016

Report to Potential Lenders to Columbia Sussex Corporation Considering Refinancing Debt Secured by Hilton Anchorage Hotel (Columbia Sussex Corporation Asset)

Columbia Sussex Corporation (CSC), owners of the Hilton Anchorage Hotel, will likely be approaching lenders for refinancing the Hilton Anchorage’s debt which matures in March, 2017. This report provides information on past debt and regulatory issues at other CSC properties that resulted in the loss of these properties from the CSC portfolio. It also provides prospective lenders with information regarding environmental issues (mold, asbestos, and lead) at the Hilton Anchorage with a focus on developments in 2014-2015. Read the report.

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In spring 2014, Hilton Anchorage management reported 48 guest rooms with either mold or the “possibility of water damage.” It reported work to fix these rooms, and that air quality was safe.

After stating repairs were completed in mid-September, Hilton Anchorage management reported in December 2014 an additional room with “an elevated mold score” that was out of service.

Learn more about what the Hilton Anchorage says it has found while addressing mold or conditions conducive to mold and how they have responded. You can also use the links on the right to report on your own experiences at the Hilton Anchorage, or contact General Manager Bill Tokman at bill.tokman@hilton.com or 907-265-7118.

June 8, 9 and 14, 2015

[Click here to see a video from the laundry room flood]

April 15, 2015

[Click here to see more images and download the Walkthrough Inspection Report]

March 6, 2015

[Click here to read UNITE HERE Local 878’s press release]

January–February 2015

Members of the Alaska State Legislature write to the owner of the Hilton Anchorage regarding the recently settled AKOSH citations and pledge to honor the ongoing worker-called boycott of the hotel. Signatories are Senator Bill Wielechowski (D–H), Senator Johnny Ellis (D–J), House Minority Leader Chris Tuck (D–23), Representative Scott Kawasaki (D–1), Representative Max Gruenberg (D–16), Representative Andrew Josephson (D–17), and Representative Matt Claman (D–21).

January 6, 2015

Hilton Anchorage settles state health citations focused on the hotel’s duty to conduct a workplace hazard assessment and to select proper protective equipment for employees. The hotel did not admit to violating the cited regulations. [Click here to read the Informal Settlement Agreement with the Alaska Occupational Health and Safety agency.]

December 12, 2014

The Hilton Anchorage disputed the allegations. See information above about the January 6, 2015 settlement.

December 3, 2014

Hilton Anchorage provides October 23 and November 12 mold testing results to Union. Hotel management says Room 1030 where Stachybotrys was reported is out of service and outside contractors will perform the remediation. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

November 12, 2014

Room 1030 shows a “mold score” of 213 out of 300. In the hotel’s test results, this score indicates a “moderate likelihood of indoor fungal growth.” [Click here to download the test results from the Hilton Anchorage]

October 31, 2014:

Hilton Anchorage management provides the Union with mold testing results, but does not include October 23 results where it found Stachybotrys spores. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

October 23, 2014

Room 1030 showed a “mold score” of 299 out of 300. In the hotel’s test results, this score indicates a “high probability that the spores originated from inside, presumably from indoor mold growth.”
[Click here to download the test results from the Hilton Anchorage. Click here to learn more about Stachybotrys.]

October 10, 2014

Hilton says all room repairs are complete. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

August 27, 2014

[Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

July 30, 2014

Hilton reports that air in Room 416 tests negative for mold. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

May 13, 2014

[Click here for details]

May 6, 2014

[Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

May 5, 2014

[Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

April 25, 2014

[Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

April 16–30

[Hilton says it’s “not aware of any medical or other evidence to substantiate such suspicions.” Click here for details]

April 4, 2014

Hilton reports its own mold sampling results from rooms 416, 700, and 716. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage]

April 1, 2014

Hilton describes moisture-related maintenance in rooms 416, 700, and 716. [Click here to download the letter from the Hilton Anchorage.]

March 19, 2014

[Click here to read the Union’s mold testing results]

February 19, 2014

[Click here to read the Union’s mold testing results]