Hotel Artesia
Oasis in the Desert.
If you are an experienced traveler to Southeastern New Mexico you know the typical trail of Western best and Comfort lodges. It’s plain fare but you get by just fine. What’s to look forward to? You come upon an Oasis in the desert. The newly reborn Hotel Artesia serves up a sumptuous menu that the most discerning designer might feast upon, beautiful tile from Italy and exquisite marble from China, Art Deco design with exhilarating colors. The New Hotel Artesia has all the smart comforts of a well-designed hotel room with high tech TV’s and lots of places to plug in all those things we plug in. It’s really quite a find and certainly the unexpected. It’s the crowning achievement in the resurgence of Mainstreet Artesia and a feather in the cap of New Mexico Hospitality
The Concept, Development and Construction of the New Hotel Artesia are an interesting story. The Hotel was the brain and design child of Richard Yates an architect from Artesia New Mexico. Known for his creative and colorful design Mr. Yates designed a refreshing structure in the Art Deco Theme. The Yates family history is goes back to the original Hotel Artesia.
The Hotel Artesia project was orchestrated by Zydeco Real Estate Management of Santa Fe New Mexico. President Richard Hefler and Project Manager Joy Barr created a powerful team who left their signature on this project from the first plans to the cutting of the ribbon and they are still involved in the day-to-day running of the hotel.
The job of interpreting Richard Yates ideas and designs fell on the capable shoulders of Architect Aaron Bohrer of Archiscape, LLC a Santa Fe Architectural firm. My favorite quote of from my interview with Aaron is “the new Hotel Artesia is a testament to the professionalism of the New Mexico construction community” This professionalism is personified in the Construction firm of Reid and Associates from Albuquerque New Mexico. They were the only builders that were able to keep the original floor plan and design intents of the project within the budget that was available. The beautiful accoutrements that distinguish the Hotel Artesia like the tile; marble, wood and sumptuous bathroom vanities were able to exist in the project due to the efficiency of the contractors and the oversight of Reid and Associates. The contractors they hired were of the same efficient and effective mindset. An example of this is Larry Reetz construction that panelized the entire project. Larry’s team utilized a minimal amount of cuts in the wood which is “healthier “as it saves electricity, time and creates less particulate matter in the job environment.
It may be a cliché but “it takes a lot of green to be a green hotel”. When faced with a challenging budget and knowing they didn’t have the funding to be LEED certified, the project team utilized their smarts and efficiency to create a “Green Hotel” wherever they could. Smart choices like the orientation of the building, good insulation and color selections to reflect rather than absorb heat, shaded portals and recessed windows to deflect the effects of the bright sun and low VOC paints used in areas where people are present. The installation of water efficient Toto toilets and bathtubs conserve the precious resource of water in this high desert environment. Many LEED strategies are present, such as bike racks, being located on a bus route and landscaping with trees that will provide shade in the future. Milgard efficient windows and non-toxic Qyp-Crete added to the efficiency and low toxic emissions. All this thought and creativity has impacted the economics of this New Mexico Hotel. Energy has been conserved and that has allowed for a lower energy bill. Remember, overhead is everyone’s concern.