As we all adjust our daily lives in the face of the evolving COVID-19 pandemic, let’s take a look at how businesses in the hospitality industry are lending a hand in support of their local communities.

Chicago hospitals are not yet at capacity, but with the virus spreading so quickly they will run out of beds for patients. In an unprecedented move this week, five Chicago-area hotels have offered more than 1,000 guest rooms to help isolate individuals who are affected by the virus, have had contact with the virus, and awaiting test results. The hotels will also offer rooms to healthcare professionals that are exposed to the virus and do not wish to spread it to their families at home.

Several homeless and domestic violence shelters are now closed, leaving many people without a place to shelter. The hotels plan to help as many individuals as they can with essential housing for all those in need. The City of Chicago is planning to secure as many as 2,000 hotel rooms by the end of the week. Not only are these hospitality properties lending a hand to the local healthcare and other facilities by mitigating transmission risks, but this courageous move also provides a source of revenue for the hospitality industry. The city already has an agreement in place to rent the 215-room Hotel One Sixty-Six.

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The number of hotels wanting to be part of the program “is growing by the hour,” Michael Jacobson, CEO, and President of the Illinois Hotel & Lodging Association, told the Chicago Tribune. “Statewide, we’ve already identified over 12,000 rooms,” Jacobson said. “… I’ve gotten five or six new hotels that have volunteered. They’re answering the call to action and they want to be helpful to the city and the state.”

Agilysys is truly honored to have Hotel One Sixty-Six as its valued partner.