FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contacts:

Devine + Powers: Lucy MacNichol

215-568-2525 / lmacnichol@devinepowers.com

Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants: Stacey Ellis

415-955-5492 / stacey.ellis@kimptongroup.com

KIMPTON AND CITY OF PHILADELPHIA ANNOUNCE FIRST HOTEL AND RESTAURANT TO EARN LEED® CERTIFICATION FROM THE

U.S. GREEN BUILDING COUNCIL

Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia and

Square 1682 Restaurant Celebrate Gold

PHILADELPHIA, September 9, 2010 – Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, and the City of Philadelphia, announce that one year after opening, Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia and Square 1682 restaurant have been awarded LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification at the Gold level by the U.S. Green Building Council and verified by the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). LEED is the preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. The milestone marks the first LEED-certified hotel and restaurant for Kimpton and for Philadelphia.

“This achievement truly marks a milestone in Kimpton’s history and 29-year initiative of sustainability,” said Mike Depatie, CEO at Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants. “Since our founding, we have strived to lead the charge of environmental change in the hospitality industry through our extensive EarthCare program. With more than 100 eco-friendly operating practices and eco-friendly products firmly in place, turning our attention to sustainable development of hotels is the next logical step for continuous evolution of EarthCare.”

“Kimpton has taken the lead in demonstrating how the hospitality community can impact greener destinations for visitors, business travelers and convention attendees,” said Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter. “This is a shining gold star in Philadelphia’s effort to become America’s Greenest City by 2015.”

A collection of 50 boutique hotels and 54 chef-driven restaurants in 22 major metropolitan cities, Kimpton broke the mold on cookie-cutter lodging in 1981 when founder Bill Kimpton pioneered the idea of hospitality with personality. Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants led the way in the hospitality industry by being the first hotel company to make environmental concerns a company-wide focus.

Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia, a 230-room hotel with 6,000 square feet of meeting space, and Square 1682, a chef-driven restaurant, is a thoughtful adaptive reuse of one of Philadelphia’s architectural landmarks, a historically significant 1929 Art Deco design by Paul Philippe Cret. Located at 17^th and Sansom streets in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square neighborhood, and known as the Architects Building, it once served as the headquarters of the Philadelphia chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Kimpton worked with the Morristown, N.J. office of Gensler architects, and hotel designer Dayna Lee of Powerstrip Studio in Hollywood, Calif., to refurbish the 80-year-old landmark structure, Kimpton’s 11^th adaptive reuse development. With its many examples of sustainable design, and its eco-conscious and energy-efficient practices, Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia is setting the standard for eco-friendly best practices in the hotel industry.

To achieve LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council, the building’s design and operations are measured in multiple categories, including: energy savings, water efficiency, CO₂ emissions reduction, improved indoor environmental quality, and stewardship of resources and sensitivity to their impacts. The new HVAC system optimizes energy performance with special green settings to ensure the least amount of energy possible is used. Other important LEED certification standards that are part of the design include: Daylight in 90 percent of all hotel spaces, reducing water usage by 20 percent, and having at least 10 percent recycled content in the materials and resources used in the design. Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia is also working to support green power, by purchasing enough renewable energy credits equivalent to two years’ power demand.

Based in San Francisco, Kimpton is the leading boutique hotel company in the United States, famous for its reputation for consistently delivering highly personalized attention, care and comfort of its guests.

Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia is located in the heart of Center City, at 117 South 17^th Street, in Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. For more information or reservations, please visit www.hotelpalomar-philadelphia.com, or call 877.725.1778 or 1-800-KIMPTON.

ABOUT KIMPTON HOTEL PALOMAR PHILADELPHIA

Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia, one of Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants’ 50 boutique hotels in the United States, is a highly stylized, eco-friendly, upscale boutique hotel located in the heart of Philadelphia’s Rittenhouse Square neighborhood. It is the first Kimpton hotel to open in Philadelphia and Kimpton’s first LEED-certified hotel. With its thoughtful adaptive reuse renovation of one of Philadelphia’s architectural landmarks, the Architects Building, and its 230 stylish and sustainable guestrooms, 6,000 square feet of meeting space and living room-style lobby, Palomar Philadelphia exemplifies artful and eco-conscious design. Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia is located at 117 South 17^th Street, one block from picturesque Rittenhouse Square, and within walking of the Pennsylvania Convention Center. For more information, please visit www.hotelpalomar.com or call 877.725.1778.

ABOUT SQUARE 1682

Set in the heart of downtown Philadelphia, adjacent to Rittenhouse Square, Square 1682 is adjacent to Kimpton Hotel Palomar Philadelphia. Chef Guillermo Tellez’s New American menu honors taste and tradition, drawing inspiration from Philadelphia’s rich culinary landscape and his work and travel throughout Asia, Mexico and India. A LEED-certified restaurant, Square 1682 brings more than great food to the table with its commitment to eco-sound culinary practices and dedication to independent farmers, local purveyors, boutique ranches and sustainable fisheries. The two-story restaurant’s eco-friendly practices are complimented by its interior, which was designed by Dayna Lee, of Powerstrip Studio in Hollywood, CA. An adaptive reuse of Philadelphia’s beloved 1929 Architects Building, Square 1682’s design focuses on art and architectural lines, boasting a sculptural wood-encased geometric staircase, a semi-transparent glass wine display, paintings by local artists and an exhibition kitchen. For more information, visit www.square1682.com or call 215-563-5008.

ABOUT KIMPTON HOTELS & RESTAURANTS

San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants, a collection of boutique hotels and chef-driven restaurants in the US, is an acknowledged industry pioneer and was the first to bring the boutique hotel concept to America. Founded in 1981 by Bill Kimpton, the company is well-known for making travelers feel welcomed and comfortable while away from home through intuitive and unscripted customer care, stylish ambience and having a certain playfulness in its approach to programs and amenities. Each hotel provides a range of exciting culinary experiences through locally-loved, top-rated, destination, chef-driven restaurants. Kimpton leads the hospitality industry in ecological practices through its innovative EarthCare program that spans all hotels and restaurants. Market Metrix, a recognized authority and leader in feedback solutions, consistently ranks Kimpton above other hotel companies in luxury and upper upscale segments for customer satisfaction. Privately held Kimpton operates 50 hotels and 54 restaurants in 16 states. For more information visit www.KimptonHotels.com or call 1-800-KIMPTON.

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