WORLD PROPERTY CHANNEL ®

Le Meridien Chambers Hotel, Minneapolis

(MINNEAPOLIS, MN) -- Ralph Burnet, a prominent Minneapolis hotelier, art collector and civic philanthropist, is Starwood's Developer of the Year for 2009.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (NYSE:HOT) cited Burnet and his company, RWB Development, for their efforts at two Downtown Minneapolis-based, Starwood-managed properties---the 229-room W Minneapolis - The Foshay and the recently converted 60-room Le Meridien Chambers.

The Starwood Developer of the Year award "recognizes those organizations or individuals that opened hotels between Sept. 1, 2008 and Dec. 31, 2009 and went above and beyond to ensure that development was on-time, on-strategy and on-brand," according to a prepared statement from Starwood.

The honor was announced at the recent Starwood North America Owners Conference in Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Denise Coll

In presenting the award to Burnet, Denise Coll, President of the North America Division, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc, noted his "passion for art, design and lifestyle hotel brands as reflected in his two spectacular properties."

"Ralph takes personal ownership of his investments, and his attention to detail is evident the moment you walk in the door to one of his hotels," said Coll.

"Both his hotels are historical retrofits of office buildings and among the first of their kind," She added.

"Ralph's belief in Starwood's brands has made him an incredible asset to the company, and his zest for collecting art and globetrotting has helped to authentically bring the W and Le Méridien points of view to life."

Ralph Burnet

The award was presented as part of the First Annual North America Owner Awards and was one of 19 awards presented in eight different categories.

Other categories included: Environmental Sustainability, Community Outreach, Conversion of the Year, New Build of the Year, Renovation of the Year, Deal of the Year and the President's Award.

Coll said Le Méridien Chambers at 901 Hennepin Avenue, is considered one of the top art hotels in the world.  The W Minneapolis - The Foshay is located in the historic Foshay Tower at Marquette and Ninth Street.

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