Former Hotel Irvine General Manager J.D. Shafer has been named a senior director of community management for Irvine Company Apartment Communities.
Both the hotel and apartment operation are owned by Newport Beach-based developer Irvine Company.
Shafer led the hotel’s recent renovation, which recast the property as a “lifestyle hotel” that draws tourists along with a longstanding core of business travelers, while also attracting locals to its restaurants and other amenities.
Public spaces took on a hipper tone with vibrant colors in open seating areas, local products in the “grab-and-go” store, and a redesigned bar and restaurant. Local marketing included Friday night movies on the hotel’s new “backyard” lawn.
Shafer will oversee four communities near the Irvine Spectrum: the Park at Irvine Spectrum Center; Los Olivos Apartment Homes; the Village at Irvine Spectrum Center; and the new Centerpointe.
Hotel Irvine has not yet named a replacement for Shafer, who could not be reached for comment.
