# OBC / Oceanaire - Another GM gone



## RLS50 (Jan 17, 2017)

Found out something very disappointing this weekend at OBC/Oceanaire.   It appears that DRI has let go (in December) of yet another General Manager (Daniel Hamman).  He was only there for less than 6 months.   I can’t understand though why he was let go.   It seems to make no sense. 

We met him in August, shortly after he started, and he seemed very impressive and seemed like he actually knew what he was doing.   He had a solid plan for the refurbishment project and also a significant WiFi upgrade, which is desperately needed there.     It was our conversation with him that gave us some reassurance that maybe we just needed to give DRI the time they needed to finally start to establish some continuity.  It seemed like things might actually start improving after a very slow and very poor start to 2016 and a very poor initial transition from Gold Key to DRI (for many former Gold Key owners).

That is now 2 big FAILS in a row for DRI to provide owners some stability at the General Manager position.   The GM is a pretty critical position at any property as he/she sets the tone for a resort and assures that each department is operating correctly and delivering to the paying customers.    A competent GM is also critical to making sure that the money spent from the reserve funds are used properly for any major multi-million dollar refurbishment, like OBC told us they were starting at the Owner’s Meeting in October.

At this point I still have no idea why DRI even bought the Gold Key properties?  Was it really just to jack up everybody’s maintenance fees and try to peddle points?   Or are they ever going to get serious about running a top notch resort?   Because unfortunately the VB properties have all been going downhill in their social media ratings since DRI took over.   For example, on Trip Advisor, since DRI took over for Gold Key, OBC has went from a ranking in the high 30’s or low 40's in Virginia Beach to now around 69th (out of 108 facilities), dropping over 30 spots in the rankings in the last 12 months.   

DRI is entering their 2nd year and they still haven’t made any major improvements to any of the properties and the staff turnover appears to be higher than ever.     All of this confusion and turnover from a company that charges some of the highest “management” fees in the industry?   Are they really that tone deaf as a company?

The most frustrating part of all of this is that OBC and Oceanaire should be almost dummy proof.  The properties have the best location in Virginia Beach and are the newest properties in town, so there is all kinds of built in advantages that they enjoy, and yet DRI still can’t seem to get it together down there. 

Can Apollo please just sell DRI now to a company that actually knows how to manage properties well like Marriott or something?


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## RLS50 (Jan 17, 2017)

Another irony...

The #1 ranked property in Virginia Beach (out of 108 properties), according to Trip Advisor, is the Hilton right next door to OBC, about 150 feet or so away.   I believe that Bruce Thompson, the former CEO of Gold Key, was also heavily involved with the construction of that Hilton.   In fact, the room decor and layout of Hilton, and the property itself shares many common features one will also find in the properties at OBC and Oceanaire.

So how can a facility that is very similar in many respects, and right next door to OBC and Oceanaire, be ranked #1 overall in Virginia Beach and OBC is ranked #69?

The answer is self evident.


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## DanZale2000 (Jan 17, 2017)

RLS50 said:


> Can Apollo please just sell DRI now to a company that actually knows how to manage properties well like Marriott or something?



Or maybe the new CEO will replace the Senior Vice President of Resort Operations, Ronan O’Gorman, with someone who can do the job.


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## RLS50 (Jan 17, 2017)

DanZale2000 said:


> Or maybe the new CEO will replace the Senior Vice President of Resort Operations, Ronan O’Gorman, with someone who can do the job.


As I said in another thread on this topic, it is my hopes that bringing in a CEO with a long career at Starwood will result in improvements to the way DRI manages their properties.   But if he really wants to make changes that improve the customer experience, or is allowed to make real changes by Apollo management, he has a big job in front of him.

I am still trying to figure out what DRI actually does really well as a management company except charge their owners super high fees.   I'm being serious, not snarky.   For example using Marriott or Westin/Starwood as a comparison, I know both of those companies are also going to charge high fees, but I also know from experience that both almost always provided exceptional service and outstanding properties managed by professional and experienced GM's overseeing (mostly) experienced and / or well trained staffs.

I am not sure if DRI is not aware, or just doesn't care, how different it is dealing with them compared to almost any other property management company we have dealt with.   And I don't mean that in a good way.

I thought things were taking a turn for the better in Virginia Beach, now I am questioning DRI's ability to ever get things running smoothly all over again.   It seemed like they finally had a very qualified and promising GM in place and then got rid of him with no replacement named so far.    There has been way too much personnel churn and understaffed departments at OBC since DRI took over, and the problem has now existed for most of 2016 and continues into 2017.

Meanwhile if you look at the 2016 budget DRI is taking millions for themselves from just the OBC budget in management fees and corporate allocations.   It's a joke.


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## pedro47 (Jan 17, 2017)

The former Gold Key owner I feel used the money he received from selling Gold Key to finish his pet project. The renovation of the historic Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach,VA. This is my opinion only.


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## Egret1986 (Jan 17, 2017)

pedro47 said:


> The former Gold Key owner I feel used the money he received from selling Gold Key to finish his pet project. The renovation of the historic Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach,VA. This is my opinion only.



I think it's more than your "opinion only."  He had several projects envisioned and was simply moving on to his next endeavor.  He shared as much about the Cavalier and a Norfolk project that were now dear to his heart at the Beachwoods HOA meeting announcing the DRI acquisition.

"After closing in 2014 for some serious renovations, Gold Key plans on reopening the hotel this April." from an online article dated October 20, 2016.


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