AREA GETS NEW LEVEL OF HOSPITALITY; FULL-SERVICE HYATT CENTER OPENS.

Byline: Teresa Jimenez Daily News Staff Writer

The chandeliers have been hung, the trees have been planted and the bar, stocked. Now, the Hyatt Valencia Hotel and Conference Center is ready for its first guests.

On Friday, representatives from The Newhall Land and Farming Company, Hyatt Hotels, Los Angeles County and the city celebrated the grand opening of the hotel, the Santa Clarita Valley's first full-service, upscale conference center.

``This is equipped to host all, hopefully, of the events that we have traveled over the hill to attend,'' said Gary Cusumano, president of Newhall Land, which owns the hotel.

With the new visitors and events, sales-tax revenue will ``find its way into (Assistant City Manager) Ken Pulscamp's organization to help all the residents of this area,'' he said.

Visitors during Friday's celebration were clearly impressed by the hotel's interior, a creamy yellow accented with shades of green, gray and rose. A bank of windows showcases the outdoor patio, pool and fireplace with a 35-foot chimney. Guests even had the opportunity to enjoy the new hotel smell - a result of last-minute improvements.

``You should have seen it two days ago. It's been a transformation,'' said Pat Trammell, director of sales and marketing for Hyatt Valencia. ``We just brought the furniture in last night.''

The improvements were made just in time for a wedding and reception to be held today for 140 people. Lunch also will be served today in the Vines restaurant, Trammell said.

And the hotel is expecting overnight guests tonight. Twenty of the rooms, which cost $189 for a single on weekdays and $139 on weekends, have been reserved, Trammell said. Amenities include a room service menu with everything from juice ($3) and a bagel with cream cheese ($3) to Maryland crab cake ($8) and seared snapper ($12).

``Only seven of the (room) guests are attending the wedding,'' Trammell said. ``The others are people who just called and made reservations.''

Dinner at Vines, which Cusumano called the best restaurant in Santa Clarita, will be served tonight. Trammell said reservations will be taken for dinners on the weekends.

The hotel has 244 rooms and 26,000 square feet of conference facilities, including the 6,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom and 2,400-square-foot Valencia Ballroom.

The tallest building in Santa Clarita, the hotel also offers a fitness center, business center, whirlpool and patio dining.

Both Cusumano and Robert Mayhew, vice president of Valencia Co., praised the teamwork that made the hotel's construction possible. The city helped with the construction of the conference center by obtaining federal economic development administration funds.

The end result has been worth it, said Jo Anne Darcy, a city councilwoman and aide to Los Angeles County Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich.

``Everyone's going to love the new Hyatt Valencia and Conference Center,'' Darcy said. ``I guarantee it.''

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1--Color) Hyatt Vice President John Orr speaks before an assembled audience at the opening of the Hyatt Valencia Hotel and Conference Center.

(2--Color) A Hyatt employee opens the curtains in one of the 244 rooms of the Hyatt Valencia Hotel and Conference Center on Friday.

John Lazar/Special to the Daily News