Majorca-based hotel company Sol Meliá has begun operations in the USA with the opening under a management agreement of the Meliá Atlanta.

The hotel - owned by Fundus America and which was previously run by the Marriott chain under the name Renaissance Atlanta Downtown Hotel - will be taken over by Sol Meliá on 15 October and undergo a US$35m (£23m) revamp scheduled for completion by 2013. The 25-storey property, on West Peachtree Street NW, currently provides 479 rooms and 23 suites, a total of 31,000sq ft (2,880sq m) of meeting space, an outdoor pool, and a fitness centre offering cv kit and free weights.

Dining options comprise The grille at 590; a lobby bar called Ashleys; and a coffee bar. Gabriel Escarrer, vice chair and CEO of Sol Meliá said: "The company is very excited about the addition of the new Meliá Atlanta and I'm sure it will help us give a boost to many projects we would like to develop in the USA over the coming years."

The company already has a presence in the Americas, operating hotels in Brazil, Argentina, México, Venezuela and Costa Rica, among others. In June this year it sold its TRYP brand to the Wyndham Hotel Group, creating a strategic alliance to develop the new "Tryp by Wyndham" brand in major markets, including the USA.