The Modern Hotelier #206: Behind Hotel Polaris at the United States Air Force Academy | with GM Curtis Bova
===
Curtis Bova: We talk about the fact that we are just another neighbor in the community. We're just a bigger house within this community, and we want to be a part of that fabric, uh, in everything that we do. So seeing that come to life has given me kind of like the greatest satisfaction.
David: We are here with Curtis Bova, General Manager of Hotel Polaris in Colorado Springs. Welcome. Thank you very much. Alright, so we're gonna start off, can you share a story of how the Polaris is connected to the Academy and what that relationship means to you and your team? 
Curtis Bova: Absolutely. It’s a inherent part of the fabric of who and what we are. The hotel was designed truly for the academy, um, and in a lot of ways the design. Philosophy for the Acade for the academy itself, which was a mid-century modern architecture style, was the inspiration for the hotel as well. That's just the physical connection. Um, certainly we sit right outside the North gate of the academy and have their name in our relationship line.
I often say in our orientation to our team members, which we call Iday, which connects to the academy, uh, in processing day. Um, that the relationship line is almost the most important part of our name. We're, we're Hotel Polaris, but we're also at the US Air Force Academy. And, and we feel like that makes us one of a kind and we, it ties us in a way that we want to live up to the same values that they live up to, which is grounded in integrity, service, and excellence. And we woven that into our service philosophy and everything that we do here at Hotel Polaris. 
David: And what does that mean to the guest?
Curtis Bova: Yeah, I think for the guest, it really gives them the opportunity when they're staying here, whether they knew that we had that connection to the academy or not, that they're gonna walk away enriched and feeling somehow more connected, likely more prideful of what the Academy represents.
But done in a way where they don't feel like they've been in a museum. There's a lot of, if you know, you know, design elements in the hotel. But I'd say almost more importantly, experiential service touchpoints, um, that engage them and connect them, not just with the Academy, but with the Pikes Peak region as well.
We're known for being the gateway to both the academy and the Pikes Peak region. And with all that it has to offer in the way of outdoor adventure, there's as much to do beyond our walls as there is in the hotel. 
Steve: Yeah, definitely not lacking of any views, that's for sure. So this project has been in the making since 9/11. What were some of the driving factors that kept this vision alive for so long? 
Curtis Bova: Yeah. You know, it's really an interesting story because I think oftentimes people associate. This project to the time when shovels went in the ground. So, you know, the build out of the property was about two and a half years.
I like to say it was built over time because as you mentioned, the inspiration for it and the idea came about after 9/11. The Academy is an operating air base. So when 9/11 happened, like all bases across the country, it went under lockdown. That ended up lasting a couple of years. Um, and it, it was a huge hit to the economy of Colorado Springs because the chapel at the academy and the visitor center are the number one manmade, um, attraction in Colorado Statewide over a million people a year visiting. So it had a significant impact. So the idea came about to try and move a more modern, um, visitor center outside of the North Gate  and the hotel component came about that, uh, as part of that, um, to enable people to stay here, future cadets, to stay here, families visiting cadets.
So that all started to percolate. After 9/11, two people, a former, an alumnus of the academy, Danni, and the superintendent at the time in about 2012, um, general Mike Gould really brought. The idea to fruition, um, of how to get it built and started working with the city there. There's a lot of stakeholders involved, including the, uh, visit Colorado Springs, the city council.
There's city and state money, um, within the project itself, and it's one of four projects, um, uh, that are all part of the city for champions positioning for Colorado Springs, and this was the first to be approved, uh, and the last one to get across the finish line. 
David: And so as general manager, what does it mean to you to see this project finally completed and open after such a long journey?
Curtis Bova: For me, I think the most meaningful impact has been, uh, seeing the community embrace it the way that they have, um, the, the journey, like the, the race to the starting line, I like to say, um, was a, was a chapter and a season within itself. Um, but now that we're open it's a whole new season, a whole new chapter of life and that connection to the community and seeing that it's.
The way we've been embraced. Um, again, you know, I like to talk about our orientation, um, our iday that we do with all of our team members. We talk about the fact that we are just another neighbor in the community. We're just a bigger house within this community, and we want to be a part of that fabric, uh, in everything that we do. So seeing that come to life has given me kind of like the greatest satisfaction. 
Steve: I bet. I bet. So everywhere you look in this hotel. There's the design honors, the Air Force, and has ties back to the academy. How do you tie in, how do you balance the honor in honoring the academy along with delivering a modern guest experience?
Curtis Bova: You know, I think we've been blessed with the fact that, um, there's, there's been some brilliance in the design of the hotel itself. The pulling through the mid-century modern, uh, design architecture gives us a visually compelling, uh, aspect from the moment that you walk in the door. But there's automatic areas of education and connection and engagement with a guest because of those kind of secret connections to the design element of the academy that, again, that's that physical representation, the service touchpoints are the ones that really bring it to life. So, we've tried to do that in everything from the arrival experience. If you have a connection to the academy, if you are at a graduate, um, you've been assigned a class color, there's four primary class colors.
And we will recognize that upon check-in, they have their own unique color. Coordinated, uh, keys when they check in, but even if you're not part of the academy, we've got other ways to engage you in that. We have a BSA wood airplanes that we hand out, especially to the children, they're quite popular. And we have flights at five which allow them to participate in a competition. Um, and there's design elements like that are embedded in our service, uh, throughout a guest experience. And I think it's those service touchpoint that really define what the luxury experience here is because it's more of a modern one, not a traditional luxury.
David: And for you, what was the most rewarding part of getting this hotel live? 
Curtis Bova: With all the history and the story behind it and the connection with the academy getting live was part of it, but now it's looking forward and what it's gonna be. I feel as though we always talked about being an instant icon on the hospitality landscape of, of Colorado, which is a rich and storied one.
And we feel like our uniqueness. You know, has enables us to stand out in that way. Now it's about building a reputation for delivering excellence, and really enriching experiences for guests of the Pikes Peak region, guests to the academy. I really feel like it's, it's everything that's over the dashboard, that's more, more, uh. Um, meaningful to me and just seeing it happen every single day. The team that's been assembled, the pride that they take, you know, I'm extremely proud that not even been open a year. We, we just moved into the top five on TripAdvisor for guest satisfaction. For us, that was always an objective.
We didn't necessarily think we'd get there until the end of the year. But it's been the heart and the spirit, the passion of the team members that have enabled that to happen. That's where I draw all my enthusiasm and excitement. 
David: That's great. That's great. Well, thank you Curtis, for sitting down with us. We really appreciate it. 
Curtis Bova: Thank you. I appreciate the opportunity. 
Steve: Thank you.