Metropolitan State College of Denver has selected the team that will design, develop, build and run the day-to-day operations of a new hotel on campus, accompanied by a hotel learning center to train Metro State students in hotel management.

The team is comprised of eight firms: Mortenson Construction & Development, Sage Hospitality, RNL, JG Johnson Architects, studioINSITE, Swerdling & Associates, RBC and HVS. The team was selected from among 10 submittals for the request for proposal for the hotel learning center.

The Hotel and Hotel Learning Center, scheduled to open in 2012, will be located on the Auraria Campus along Speer Boulevard between Auraria Parkway and Larimer Street. The hotel will feature approximately 180 hotel rooms, 21,000 sq ft of conference space and 21,000 sq ft of academic space.

Both elements of the project are estimated to cost $40 million to build. Funds for the hotel will be raised through a public-private partnership, while donations will be sought for the hotel learning center.