Editorial Board   Guest Author

Mr. Uhrin

Rob Uhrin

Principal, Cooper Carry

Rob Uhrin is a leader in the thriving Hospitality Studio in Cooper Carry's Washington, DC office, where he combines resources from the firm's national practice to complete projects nationwide. During a decade in Atlanta working on multiple building types, Mr. Uhrin settled on hospitality. This varied architectural experience gives him the particular ability to integrate hospitality projects into the mixed-use environments that are fundamental to Cooper Carry's design philosophy. Mr. Uhrin's favorite projects include urban infill that revitalize an existing urban area and represent investment in the surrounding neighborhoods. He leads the design of projects ranging from massive urban scale developments to small boutique hotels, while also acting as a thought leader as the hospitality industry continually redefines itself. He is currently leading the design of diverse hospitality projects including the Notre Dame Embassy Suites hotel in South Bend, IN, the NC State Centennial Campus Conference Center & Hotel, in Raleigh, NC and a Hyatt Centric hotel located in the shopping district of historic Alexandria, Virginia. Beyond his hospitality and conference center expertise, Uhrin leverages Cooper Carry's emphasis on mixed-use design to create truly livable, authentic places. He is regularly on the road, pitching a greater vision of the 21st-century hotel as a gathering place surrounded by restaurants, shops, offices and townhouses, wrapped into a truly spectacular place. Mr. Uhrin has held a leadership design position on nearly 30 hotels and 6,000 keys, more than half of which have been in an urban setting, where the building is expected to catalyze its urban environment.

Please visit http://www.coopercarry.com for more information.

Mr. Uhrin can be contacted at 703-519-6152 or robuhrin@coopercarry.com

Coming up in December 2020...

Hotel Law: Protecting Guest Privacy

Every business is obligated to protect their customers from identity theft but unfortunately, data breaches have become all too common. In an effort to protect a guest's right to privacy and to safeguard their personal data, the European Union passed a General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that could hold hotels legally liable for any breaches that expose a customer's sensitive personal information. Though the GDPR only pertains to EU citizens' data, any international business that mishandles their data can be legally responsible. Another legal issue of concern is the fight involving hotel "resort fees." Several states attorney generals have recently filed suit against two major hotel chains in an effort to litigate this practice. Their suit alleges that these companies are "engaged in deceptive and misleading pricing practices and their failure to disclose fees is in violation of consumer protection laws." The suit seeks to force the hotel chains to advertise the true price of their hotel rooms. There are several other legal issues that the industry is being forced to address. Sexual harassment prevention in the workplace is still top of mind for hotel employers-particularly in New York and California, which now statutorily require harassment training. Hotels and motels in California will also soon be required to train all their employees on human trafficking awareness. Immigration issues are also of major concern to hotel employers, especially in the midst of a severe labor shortage. The government is issuing fewer H2B visas for low-skilled workers, as well as J-1 visas for temporary workers. Though there is little hope for any comprehensive immigration reform, hotel lobbying groups are actively seeking legal remedies to alleviate this problem. These are just a few of the critical issues that the December issue of the Hotel Business Review will examine in the area of hotel law. 


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