BEING a neighbour to the Ambassador hotel must be discomforting for the Holiday Inn Golden Mile in Tsim Sha Tsui. With the Ambassador falling victim to the trend of knocking down hotels for redevelopment, the hotel industry is now abuzz with the question: who's next? Attention has turned to the Holiday Inn Golden Mile and the Sheraton. Both properties are located on prime sites in Tsim Sha Tsui and occupy a generous portion of land. Holiday Inn general manager Jurgen Baumhoff says the hotel's owner, Hari Harilela, has assured Holiday Inn's management that he will not be selling the property. ''Mr Harilela has told me that there is absolutely no way he would go the same way,'' Mr Baumhoff said. ''The Holiday Inn Golden Mile is the flagship of Harilela Hotels and his hotel business is a long-term one. He is not interested in redeveloping the hotel.'' Mr Baumhoff said Mr Harilela had been approached with offers to sell the hotel, adding that its location was one of the most ideal for redevelopment. In previous interviews, Mr Harilela had said the Kowloon property was the ''soul'' of the Harilela group. Last year, he said he received several offers to sell the hotel but he would not sell the property ''at any price''. He attaches a lot of sentimental value to the property as it was the first hotel he built. It also went on to generate enough income for Mr Harilela to develop the rest of his hotel properties in Bangkok, Penang and Singapore. The group also holds a stake in a property in Montreal, Canada. The Holiday Inn Golden Mile was built during one of Hong Kong's darkest periods - the riots of 1966-67. No bank was interested in financing the hotel then, as tourism was not a significant industry. The hotel is still the biggest money-spinner for the Harilela group, contributing more than 50 per cent of its earnings. Last year, the hotel reached an average occupancy of 87 per cent and an average room rate of $780, representing a 12 per cent improvement on the previous year. Since the start of the new year, occupancy has climbed to 90 per cent with the average room rate rising to about $900. ''The improvement is because of the change in market mix - we have been getting more business travellers. In the past, most of our clients were from the leisure and tourist market,'' Mr Harilela said, adding that the hotel would be working towards increasing its corporate client base. Mr Harilela has just spent $200 million renovating and upgrading the hotel's rooms, according to Mr Baumhoff. The renovations were completed last September. ''Now he intends to spend a further $200 million on building a new facade and upgrading the hotel's public facilities - the lobby, shopping arcade and banqueting facilities under a two-year programme,'' Mr Baumhoff said. ''With all these plans and the financial commitment, which is a large sum of money, there is no reason to think that Mr Harilela would sell this hotel to be redeveloped.'' Mr Baumhoff said Mr Harilela was also looking to expanding into China and Europe. He said Mr Harilela also had a long-term commitment with the Holiday Inn Group which managed his properties. The Kowloon property has been managed by the group since its opening in 1975. Mr Baumhoff said the Holiday Inn Golden Mile had also embarked on an expansion programme. ''The hotel has just been contracted to provide catering services to Hong Kong Stadium, which is managed by Wembley on behalf of the Urban Council,'' he said. The contract runs for five years until March 1999. It also includes an option for renewal subject to confirmation from both parties. Over 90 per cent of the catering facilities will be handled by the Holiday Inn Golden Mile, which includes 50 executive suites, four lounges and bars located on the club level of the stadium. The hotel also has the right to operate five of the 16 concession stands. Hong Kong Stadium will officially open on March 11.
