Ventana Inn & Spa
Ventana Inn & Spa, ranked one of the most luxurious resorts in the world, specializes in tranquility. The Inn boasts a star-studded guest list that includes Hollywood A-listers, business magnates, and government dignitaries; it is where the elite escape to when the only interruption they can handle is the roar of waves along the Pacific coast. In August 2006, the spa suffered a fire in one of the guest rooms. It destroyed the room and damaged an adjacent room. Immediately, Ventana needed a contractor to bring the rooms back to the exacting workmanship of the original construction – workmanship in which everything from the center cuts of pine that made up the flooring to the granite entryway and bath would exhibit the top-of-the-line excellence the resort is known for. All this needed to happen without guests ever knowing crews were working there. Keeping out of sight and out of mind meant sticking to a tight schedule, working only between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays and shutting down on weekends. That left no wiggle room for delays and no time for workers to take more than a quick lunch break or arrive even a few minutes late. At the end of each workday, all tools and equipment were staged under green tarps and camouflaged. Our timely and discrete work reduced loss of clientele at the spa and inn during the reconstruction. The project began on November 2, 2006 and was completed on March 16, 2007.
Similar to the vast majority of its projects, FlagshipPDG was working out of town. So project managers carefully selected subcontractors from recommendations, especially from employees at the inn. An important factor for the project’s success was early communication with the subcontractors so they’d be clear on the unique requirements of the project. The crew willingly shouldered the challenges, like carting their equipment to the top of the mountain. (Given Ventana’s reputation as a hideaway, easy accessibility is not part of its charm.) Construction crews carried equipment up a steep trail from the road.
Diana Lucio, Risk Manager of Crescent Real Estate, who owned Ventana at the time of the project, says both inn management and Crescent were extremely satisfied with the performance of FlagshipPDG. “With FlagshipPDG, I felt that if they could do a job at Ventana in Big Sur, California, then they could do a job anywhere because it is so secluded. They just took it on and did a great job,” she says.
FlagshipPDG finished the restoration a month ahead of schedule. “It was awesome. They got in there, tackled the challenges, and worked well with the insurance carrier’s consultant and on-site management with minimal interruptions to the inn. And they actually got the repairs done before they were supposed to,” Lucio says.
