Iowa State University Foundation plans to divest the Ames Gateway Hotel and Conference Center. Lisa Eslinger, vice president of finance at Iowa State University stated that it is in the process of hiring a broker to handle the sale. The 123,000-square-foot facility has 187 rooms, a restaurant and 16,000 square feet of conference space, she said. The hotel is managed by FLIK Conference Center Management which is also a potential buyer, she said. She stated that the decision to sell was prompted by the realization that "the hotel business is far more complicated than it ever used to be and more competitive. We think it's hit the point where the skills that one needs to be successful in the hotel business outstrip our abilities."