Management
We owe our success to dedicated individuals who demand excellence and reward performance, and our executive team is no exception. They each bring unique skills, extensive management and leadership experience, attention to detail, and a determination to excel.
Rich Palmer
Rich Palmer, President, has over 30 years of experience in the hotel industry and is a managing member of several hotel development and ownership LLCs. He is responsible for all aspects of on-going management and future hotel development activities. Prior to founding the company along with Barry Gosnell, Rich was with Marriott Corporation for twelve years. He was a member of the founding team of Fairfield Inn by Marriott, where as Vice President of Finance, he was responsible for the financial management of development and on-going operations for 80 company hotels. He helped develop the chain's initial strategy and participated in all aspects of the chain's initial design, operations, and marketing decisions. He subsequently became Vice President of Franchising for Courtyard and Fairfield Inn, where he was responsible for developing and providing franchise support services. Prior to joining Marriott, he was with Ford Motor Company and Arthur Young and Company. He is a CPA and has an MBA in Finance from George Washington University, where he also has taught continuing education business management courses, and a BA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Barry Gosnell
Barry Gosnell is a third generation developer, property manager, general contractor and construction manager with a history of creating and successfully managing award winning projects in the Washington DC metro area, as well as Virginia and Maryland. He is a managing member of several hotel development and ownership LLCs, as well as President of Gosnell Construction, Inc., which performs a variety of commercial general contracting and construction management services including hotel construction; Gosnell Properties, Inc., an award winning commercial office building developer, owner, and manager; and Executive Vice President of C.W. Gosnell, Inc., an often honored residential developer and builder. As a third generation developer and general contractor, he has experience in all phases of the construction and development process. This experience includes a broad range of commercial projects such as office buildings, telecommunication and data centers, hotels, apartment buildings, condominiums and senior living facilities, as well as a wide variety of residential products ranging from upper entry level townhomes to luxury estates. He has an MBA in Business Administration from Lehigh University and a BA in Business Administration from Franklin & Marshall College.
Brian Cook
Brian Cook, Vice President of Operations, began as General Manager of the first PGH-managed hotel and currently oversees all aspects of hotel operations. In 1996, 1997, and 1998 Marriott named Brian as Fairfield Inn General Manager of the Year for the Mid-Atlantic region. He was the General Manager of the Potomac Mills Fairfield Inn in 1998, the year the hotel was named Fairfield Inn of the year. Prior to joining Palmer Gosnell, Brian had extensive experience in hotel and food and beverage operations. In 1988 he joined Marriott's Food Services Management Division and held management positions at Marriott's Aberdeen Woods Conference Center in Atlanta, Georgia and Georgetown University Conference Center in Washington, DC. In 1993 he joined the lodging side of Marriott's business as Assistant General Manager of the Hilton Head, South Carolina Fairfield Inn, followed by Assistant General Manager of the Macon, Georgia Courtyard where he was directly responsible for all front desk, housekeeping and maintenance operations. Brian was recognized within Marriott as having the ability to increase guest satisfaction and cultivate the Marriott "spirit to serve" at challenging properties. He helped bring both hotels into the top 20% of chainwide scores under his management. Brian served as Vice President of the Fredericksburg Regional Hospitality Council in 1996/97, and is active in the regional Chamber of Commerce. Brian holds a BA in Accounting and Hotel/Restaurant Management from Saint Leo University in Tampa, Florida.