GOING FOR DIAMONDS
Inn of the Anasazi seeks recognition with latest changes
The new glass water bottles replacing plastic bottled water are just one detail on the march toward AAA Five Diamonds for the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi in downtown Santa Fe.
The 58-room boutique hotel also has submitted a proposal to the Santa Fe Historic Districts Review Board to add a rooftop pool, kitchen, bar and event space at an estimated cost of $1.8 million, Managing Director Lutz Arnhold said.
The inn during 2019 replaced all mattresses, bedsheets and towels, and a new computer system was installed for sta≠.
The Inn of the Anasazi started the year with glass water bottles for all the rooms, replacing the 40,000 plastic water bottles the hotel used each year.
“We do not have a single plastic bottle anymore,” Arnhold said.
The hotel last year had already replaced plastic straws with agave straws, wheat straws for stirrers, and brought in eco-friendly bags and to-go containers at all dining establishments.
The Anasazi bought 500 glass bottles that are filled in-house with tap water filtered through a Vivreau Vi Tap that cost more than $10,000. Glass bottled water also will be available for sale.
“It is quite an investment initially,” Arnhold said. “We decided not to forward the cost to the guests.”
Washington, D.C., hotelier Brian Friedman bought the Rosewood Inn of the Anasazi in April with the intention to elevate the luxury boutique property from Four Diamonds to the highest AAA Five Diamonds rating. New Mexico has no AAA Five Diamond hotels or restaurants, and there are only 85 Five Diamond properties in the U.S. The closest to Santa Fe is The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colo., which has had Five Diamonds since 1976, longer than any other U.S. hotel, according to AAA.
“We don’t know when they are coming,” Arnhold said about the AAA inspectors. “We hope that 2020 will be our year [to get Five Diamonds].”
The employee count has increased from 100 to 110 to undertake the bountiful changes. The Rosewood Hotel Group remained to operate the Inn of the Anasazi after the Rosewood development arm CTF sold the hotel to Friedman.
“We eliminated printed newspapers,” Arnhold said. “When you check in, you can download an app to access 4,000 newspapers and magazines.”
Friedman has invested $500,000 in improvements at the inn, he said.
The Anasazi also has done away with mini shampoo, conditioner and lotion bottles and replaced them with pump bottles.
The hotel bought 500 books to decorate public areas and place in rooms, Arnhold said.
In March, the Anasazi will add two Porsche electric charging stations available for complimentary charge-ups for hotel guests with Porsche plug-in hybrid models or electric sports cars.
“We also had our best financial year in 2019,” Arnhold said without disclosing revenue figures.
Wi-Fi has been updated and new Peloton bicycles were installed in the gym.
“As we speak, we are converting all the bathtubs into walk-in showers,” he said.
The bathroom remodels started in April, and so far, 13 of the 58 rooms have been converted.
The inn also is replacing carpeting in all rooms with hardwood flooring.
Arnold declined to give more details about the rooftop pool and event space plans.
“We want to do weddings on top of the roof,” he said.
The ambition is to complete all of the improvements by March 2021.