Downtown Hotels
It looks like a Trump Scion hotel is back on track in Dallas
It appears that a Dallas hotel under the Trump family's new Scion brand is back on track. After some bumps with finding a partnering entity, the CEO of the Trump Organization's hotel business has put Dallas back in its plans, telling the New York Times that a hotel here will be announced "in the next couple of months."
The Scion brand is geared toward younger, cost-conscious travelers, with room rates at $200-$300 per night. In February, Dallas developer Mike Sarimsakci of Alterra Worldwide revealed that he'd been in talks with the Trump group to open a Scion in downtown Dallas for more than a year.
But by April, the deal had fallen through; the Trumps scrapped the plan amid concerns over Alterra's ties to foreign business interests.
However, Eric Danziger, CEO of the Trump Organization's hotel business, told the New York Times that Dallas is still in their game plan. Dallas will not be the first to open, as originally planned. But they've found a new partner in Chawla Hotels, who will open three properties in Mississippi.
Danziger said that Dallas will be one of four more Scion hotels to be announced in the next couple of months.
Chawla Hotels' principal, Dinesh Chawla, says that they will not be the partner for Dallas. The Times report didn’t identify where the proposed Dallas hotel will be built or who the Trumps' partner is for the Dallas project.
The Trump Organization has said it wants to develop Scion hotels in city and resort locations "that have a true sense of place and personality." Aside from Dallas, other spots that have been mentioned as potential sites for Scion hotels include Austin, Cincinnati, Nashville, and New York.
The Trumps won’t own any of the Scion hotels but instead will license them to business partners. However, the Trumps plan to manage day-to-day operations of those properties.
