Customer feedback fueled the design choices for a $14 million interior renovation at the Detroit Marriott Southfield on Northwestern Hwy. in the Southfield City Centre. Phase one of the renovation was completed in May 2018 and updated and refreshed the lobby, all 226 guest rooms, all conference rooms, board room, and ballrooms, according to Rodney Jackson, general manager.
But something was still missing.
“In 2019, I went back to the owners and told them they did a fantastic job with the interiors, but the outside still looked like it did before,” says Jackson. His suggestion sparked a $300,000 exterior update that uplifts the whole property. “We went with a gray color palette, light and dark gray, and it’s been really well received by customers and corporate businesses in the area.”
For the interior renovation, customers offered their top improvements wish list, which included clean, fresh wood tile flooring throughout – including guest rooms – all new lighting and bedding, plus industry standard-exceeding 50-inch smart TVs with internet and Netflix. “If you come to the hotel, you don’t need to bring all of your devices,” says Jackson. “You enter your own Netflix credentials and when you check out, your information is erased. We wanted it to be as close to home as you can possibly make it.”
Improvements at the City Centre’s Marriott live up to the enhanced, pedestrian-friendly feel of the City Centre overall, says Jackson. And with a bikeshare station right in the hotel parking lot, guests can use the shared-use path of the Southfield City Centre Trail to move around the City Centre with ease.
“The bikeshare is so popular. I didn’t realize it was used as much as it is until I watched bikes come and go from the station,” Jackson says. “It’s a lot more popular than I imagined.”
The new modern exterior look coincided with an exterior update of the Courtyard Detroit Southfield property next door, and together they move their corner of the Southfield City Centre forward, Jackson says.
“When we look up and down the street, we don’t fade into the background, especially with Beaumont close by and all the updates they have done to their building,” he says. “We and the Courtyard wanted a more modern look to be more a part of this area, instead of in the background.”
