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hrough February 2001, Mr. Cole was the president and chief executive officer of Lodgian, Inc., formed as a result of the merger between Servico, Inc., a publicly traded hotel company, and Impac Hotel Group. At the time of the merger, Lodgian was one of the largest owners of hotels in the country, with a portfolio of 143 owned and managed hotels and more than 26,000 rooms in 35 states and Canada. From 1990 to 1998, Cole was the founder and chief executive officer of Impac Hotel Group, an owner-operator and developer of hotel properties. During his tenure, Impac grew from one to 55 hotels, becoming one of Marriott International and Intercontinental Hotels and Resorts largest franchisees.
As a result of his success in managing, developing, renovating and repositioning hotels, Cole enjoys strong relationships with franchisors and capital partners. Such success is evident, as Impac received the prestigious Torchbearer Award for outstanding quality and operations, eight Modernization Awards from Bass Hotels & Resorts, and numerous development and quality awards from Marriott. Prior to 1990, Cole held a variety of general manager positions in hotels throughout the United States. Cole graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Hotel Administration from the University of New Hampshire. | 