Those passing by the Hopyard Road/Gibraltar Drive North intersection might have noticed the steadily progressing construction of the Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn, as it moves toward its projected completion date of mid-September.

A full-service hotel, the Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn will offer well appointed rooms with a full complement of guest services, a fine restaurant and much needed meeting and banquet space. Scott Raty, executive manager of the Pleasanton Chamber of Commerce says, "We (the chamber) are especially pleased to have such adequate banquet and meeting room facilities that will be well equipped to handle from small to very large groups. In a community that's as active as Pleasanton, it's a necessity.”

With flexible configurations, the meeting area can accommodate as many as 350 people in one room, l00 people in each of three rooms, or 20 people in each of 12 rooms. Other small meetings and gatherings can take place in the Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn's master hospitality suites. These double-wide rooms will be furnished with sofas, tables, kitchenettes, wet bars and walk-out patios or balconies.

Rates for regular rooms at the Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn should run between $50 and $60 a night. Each room will have luxury appointments with an additional phone in the bathroom. Some rooms will be even equipped with a television in the bathroom. Rooms on the second floor will have walk-out balconies, and first floor rooms facing the courtyard will have, individual patios with lounge chairs.

The Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn will also feature a Velvet Turtle Restaurant. Renowned for its continental-style cuisine, the Pleasanton edition promises to be the first Velvet Turtle to serve breakfast. "There's a trend to get business done while meeting for breakfast says Tim O'Shea, vice president of sales & development for SAGA Hotel Food Service Division, owners of the Velvet Turtle chain. "With our restaurant linked to a Sheraton and situated at Hacienda Business Park, we fully expect 90 percent of Sheraton overnighters to use our facility for breakfast.”

Built in a Spanish style, with off-white stucco exterior and red tile roof, the five-building complex will have 140,118 square feet of interior space with 216 hotel rooms and 1 ½ acre courtyard.

The expansive courtyard will be home to a 30' x 60' pool, outdoor spa and an extensive stream system that cascades into a series of waterfalls and fountains. The courtyard, as well as the entire Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn site, will be landscaped with flowering trees and shrubs, and wide, open lawns.

"With the hotel's setting and extensive landscaping, the guests will feel they are in a country setting,” says Steve Salvatore, who will be general manager of the Sheraton-Pleasanton Inn.

The Sheraton expects to hire approximately 40 people as maids and clerks, and for help with maintenance and sales, according to Salvatore. Employment will be done "on site as soon as the completion date becomes definite.”

The Velvet Turtle anticipates to employ 100 people for its restaurant, lounge and banquet facilities.

To see a reproduction of the original article and edition of Pleasanton Pathways, visit: March 11, 1985 Pathways.