Starwood and Meier Collaborate on Mexico City Mixed-Use LEED Project

Collaborating with Mexican developers ALHEL and GIM Desarrollos, Starwood Hotels and Resorts plans on adding yet another contemporary, design-conscious W Hotel to its portfolio. The W Santa Fe will be a centerpiece of the new mixed-use development Liberty Plaza. Comprised of three 15-story towers set on the periphery of Mexico City, the W Santa Fe will boast enviable views of Mexico City’s valley and the surrounding mountains and volcanoes.

Scheduled to open in 2013, Liberty Plaza is seeking to be one of the first LEED accredited developments in Mexico City. The mixed-use project will be located in the city’s newest financial district and in close proximity to restaurants, stylish shops and Mexico City’s top entertainment facilities. Toluca airport is only 20 minutes away, and the BBVA Bancomer Convention Center is within walking distance of Liberty Plaza.

Featuring 7,800 sq. ft. of meeting and event space—including a 3,000 sq. ft. Great Room in addition to 132 stylish guestrooms—the W Santa Fe is designed to appeal to vacationers and business travelers alike. The lower level public floors will include a bar and living room, two restaurants, a nightclub, and a medium-sized conference room, all connected by a grand stair which will be the structural centerpiece of the lobby. The upper public floors will not only host a semi-covered rooftop swimming pool and bar with an amazing view, but also the fitness and spa facilities.

The W Santa Fe will of course offer all the branded W amenities such as the AWAY® Spa, a state-of-the-art SWEAT® fitness facility and the WET pool-deck that comes with an outdoor bar. The W’s signature Living Room bar and café will turn the traditional hotel lobby into a unique experience, and the presence of the grand stair will make the multi-story lobby even more impressive.

Pritzker Prize-winning architect Richard Meier has designed the project with interiors by Mexico-based Edmonds International in collaboration with New-York based KrauseSawyer. This is Meier’s first plunge into Latin American hospitality; he is currently also working on the W Retreat Kanai on Mexico’s Riviera Maya, and he speaks highly of the two projects.

“While I have designed hotel interiors and currently have two hotels in construction in China and Italy, I have never designed one from the ground up in Latin America, and I am grateful to our clients ALHEL and GIM Desarrollos and to the hotel operator Starwood for coming to us with this opportunity. I have always been impressed with W Hotels for their creative and contemporary approach to design, which I feel will be complimentary with our modern, contextual and timeless architecture.”