"The Radisson came to us. It seemed like a good fit, so we made a deal," he said. "If the Fairmont is a good fit, we'll make a deal. If it's not, we won't. We're just beginning our due diligence.

The Radisson isn't the first investment by Canad Inns in Winnipeg's central business district. The company is an investor in the MTS Centre and it operates the adjacent Tavern United Pub. It also recently bought the Metropolitan Theatre, which is scheduled to be turned into a shrine for Canada's rock and roll music scene. Canad Inns also plans to start construction early next year on a 200-room hotel at the Health Sciences Centre.

"(The Radisson) has a good location. I think the skill set we have fits very well with that. It's also very close to the Met, the MTS Centre and Tavern United. We have a pretty good cluster there. We believe it's a pretty good operation and we think we can improve it," he said.