Lodgian Inc. appointed Edward J. Rohling president. He reports to W. Thomas Parrington, who will remain as CEO and a member of Lodgian’s board of directors.
Rohling was founder and principal of The Rohling Co. Hotel Equity Advisors, which provided acquisition, disposition, consulting and asset management services for more than 100 American and European hotels. He founded the firm in 1988.
Prior to that, Rohling was a general partner of Harvey Hotels, a predecessor of Bristol Hotels & Resorts, and a founder of Bristol Hotels. He was with the company for 16 years, and in his last few years, oversaw acquisitions and was senior vice president of corporate development prior to his departure in 1998. He was instrumental in the 1995 Bristol Hotels acquisition of United Inns, a hospitality company that owned 26 hotels, and the 1997 acquisition of a portfolio of 45 Holiday Inn hotels and 15 management contracts from Bass PLC.
Prior to Bristol Hotels, Rohling spent five years with the Marriott Corp. He is past president and chairman of the Hotel Association of Greater Dallas and holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Illinois at Chicago.
BELLSOUTH CORP.
BellSouth Corp. named Mark Feidler president and chief operating officer. He was also elected to the board of directors.
Feidler joined BellSouth in 1991 as director of strategic transactions. In 1993, he was promoted to vice president of corporate development for BellSouth Corp. and was named president of Interconnection Services three years later. In 1998, he was appointed president of BellSouth Mobility Inc., and in 2001, was named chief operating officer for Cingular Wireless, a position he held until 2004, when he was named chief staff officer for BellSouth. He was appointed chief operating officer on Jan. 1, 2005.
GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
The Georgia Department of Economic Development hired Dan Rowe as deputy commissioner for tourism.
Rowe’s experience includes nearly two decades in resort management, marketing and tourism consulting. He most recently served as chief executive and managing director of the Tourism Development Alliance of Georgia, the state’s leading tourism policy and advocacy organization. He co-founded Banyan Tree Consulting Group, a public affairs and marketing company that specializes in working with tourism clients.
Previously, Rowe served at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Brasstown Valley Resort and Aspen Skiing Co. In 2003, he received the Larry Allen Award for Tourism Excellence at the annual Governor’s Tourism Conference in recognition of outstanding support and leadership in Georgia tourism.
Rowe will oversee the activities of the department’s Tourism Division, which works to promote Georgia as a first-rate travel, meetings and convention destination, enhancing the state’s economic climate and improving the quality of life for Georgia citizens. In 2004, the tourism industry generated more than $26 billion in travel spending in Georgia.
IMAGES USA
IMAGES USA appointed Shawn Arthur vice president/creative director. Arthur will manage the creative staff while driving innovative concept developments based on strategic insight.
Prior to joining IMAGES, Arthur served as vice president/associate creative director of Matlock, an Atlanta advertising and public relations firm. He has more than 15 years of experience as an art director and creative director for such clients as BellSouth, BMW, Dell, Delta Airlines, Dixie Crystals, ESPN Zone, Garner Foods, Georgia-Pacific, Publix Supermarkets, Nationwide, Schick and Turner.
Arthur earned his bachelor’s degree in commercial art from Middle Tennessee State University and attended the Portfolio Center in Atlanta. He has been a recipient of, and served as a judge for a number of local and regional Addy and ShowSouth awards.
CLEAR CHANNEL RADIO
Clear Channel Radio promoted Mike Wheeler to regional vice president of programming for Clear Channel’s Atlanta region.
Wheeler’s responsibilities include overseeing five stations in Atlanta, the Braves Radio Network, the Georgia News Network and Total Traffic Network. Wheeler will also oversee programming for Clear Channel stations in Macon, Columbus and LaGrange/Newnan.
He most recently performed similar duties for San Antonio, Texas-based Clear Channel’s six-station cluster in St. Louis.
POST PROPERTIES INC.
Post Properties Inc. hired Curtis W. Walker as executive vice president and regional investment director in the Southeast.
Walker will oversee the company’s development efforts in Atlanta, Florida and Charlotte. Previously, he was senior vice president for acquisitions at Fairfield Properties, where he completed conventional and student multifamily developments with more than 4,500 units valued in excess of $350 million. Prior to that, Walker was senior vice president of acquisitions of the Southwest/Southeast region for AMLI Residential.
He has 20 years of experience in the real estate industry, during which he has been involved with apartment financing, joint ventures, development and acquisitions worth more than $1.5 billion.
