by carla gray
carla@themonitor.net

GUN BARREL CITY-The Cedar Creek Lake Area Chamber of Commerce Gun Barrel City Chapter met Aug. 20 for their regular networking meeting. Each month a guest speaker is asked to come and give a briefing on business or municipal updates. YNS owner Eva Haynes and project manager Stephen Haynes were the guest speakers for Aug. They were invited to give a report on Pier 334 and dispel rumors.
Haynes began his update with saying, “So Pier 334, the Tapestry Collection by Hilton was what we chose to do.” Continuing on about the hotel Haynes said, “It will have 62 rooms, amphitheater theater, water feature, 700 feet of waterfront and a marina. The price tag today is $27 million.”
So why Hilton? Haynes went on to answer, “Hilton is the biggest brand in the world. They've got 1.4 million rooms, they have 28 different brands, and there are 260 Hilton Honors members, which is a staggering number, that's worldwide. It is also ranked number one as the world's best workplace by Great Place to Work and by Fortune Magazine.”
According to Haynes the Tapestry Collection by Hilton is part of Hilton’s Lifestyle Collection. Haynes said that Hilton Reward points can be used at the mid-to-upscale independent boutique hotel. The hotel is projected to open Dec. 31 and no later than early spring. A website for the hotel should be ready by Nov. for reservations.
Haynes also talked about what he called the falsehoods about the hotel falling into the lake, saying “The architects who designed it have their own inspector because the architects insure us because if the building falls down, their insurance pays for it,” Haynes went on to say. Haynes added, “Each subcontractor carries insurance that indemnifies us for the same reason. If they do something that's faulty, we have a claim to it. Hilton inspects the product because their name is on it and it's their brand. And although it's Pier 334, when you look in the Hilton manual, all 260 million people are going to see a Hilton property in Gun Barrel City.”
On a personal note, Haynes was very clear to state that they were not for a data center at Key Ranch. He said, “We were against the data center, and we spent a lot of time and energy, as the county commissioner can tell you, making sure it didn't happen in our backyard".