Their clients don't expect the hospitality sector to fully recover from the coronavirus outbreak for at least two years. And while AEC firms serving this sector say they've restarted hotel projects that had been put on hold during the pandemic, they also foresee mostly renovation and adaptive reuse, rather than new construction, in their immediate futures. "Compared to other sectors, hospitality is probably only better than retail at this point," says Bob Winter, PE, Director of Hospitality for the engineering consultant IMEG. Even PCL Construction-which as of early June was working on 39 hotel/resort projects, including a first-of-its-kind immersive adventure resort, Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser at Disney World in Florida-expects the negative impact from COVID-19 to "linger for years," says Bob Hopferberg PCL's Vice President of National Business Development. Some firms say they are girding for a spate of hotel foreclosures over the next 12 to 18 months. Distressed and half-built assets will be in demand among private equity firms, and some of these properties will likely be converted to multifamily, mixed use, or student housing.
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