Nov. 6, 2007 -- A partnership announced Monday will invest almost $30 million to develop three hotels in west Amarillo.

Amarillo West Hotel Group, a limited liability partnership, will bring the cluster of hotels -- a Holiday Inn, a Candlewood Suites and a Staybridge Suites -- to a 12-acre site behind restaurants along the north side of Interstate 40, east of Soncy Road, developer Justin Chapman said.

The hotel group consists of Chapman and the G.R. Chapman Limited Partnership, a real estate and development company, and husband-and-wife hoteliers Jayanti Nathu and Mina Patel.

In a separate venture, Patel and Nathu will join with Patel's brothers Bud Desai and Paresh Desai to construct a $4 million, 65-room Sleep Inn & Suites at 6915 W. Interstate 40, the site of a former Krispy Kreme store.

Patel and Nathu originally planned to build the Holiday Inn behind the Fifth Season Inn, which they own, at 6801 W. Interstate 40.

But the land offered by the Chapman company presented a better opportunity to create a campus of hotels, Patel said.

Clustering the hotels together will strengthen their appeal because guests staying at any of the properties will have convenient access to the Holiday Inn's restaurant and conference space, said Greg Aden, regional director of franchise development for InterContinental Hotels Group.

IHG is the umbrella corporation that franchises the three brands and several others.

The Staybridge and Candlewood properties will co-exist well because Staybridge is an upscale brand that charges average daily room rates of $100 to $110, while the mid-scale Candlewood Suites run $70 to $75, Aden said.

"Both of those [guests] should find the full-service attributes of the Holiday Inn attractive," he said. "Specific guests will be attracted to each brand, and each brand will compete with a specific comp set [comparable hotels] in the area."

The three IHG franchises will not occupy the full 12 acres, leaving room for the possibility of further hotel development in the future, Patel said.

Early estimates place the cost of the 154-room Holiday Inn at $12 million, the 120-room Staybridge Suites at $10 million and the 85- to 100-room Candlewood Suites at $7.5 million, Patel said.

Groundbreaking for the Holiday Inn should occur in February, with construction of the others to start by May, Patel said. Each property should take 10 to 12 months to build.

"The [Holiday Inn] will take the longest, because it is a full-service hotel," Patel said.

The "full-service" designation means the hotel will contain a restaurant -- in this case, a sports grill and bar -- and offer room service, she said.

Constructing the three hotels simultaneously will allow the group to make large-scale purchases of building materials and amenities, such as flat-panel televisions, Nathu said.

Groundbreaking for construction of the Sleep Inn should take place in February.

Besides the Fifth Season, Patel and Nathu own the Fairfield Inn & Suites in Valley and previously owned the Hampton Inn & Suites at 6901 W. I-40, Patel said.

The Desai brothers also own the Camelot Inn at 2508 E. I-40 and the Royal Inn in Borger.

THE PLAN:

Amarillo West Hotel Group has plans to build the following properties on 12 acres near Interstate 40 and Soncy Road. Construction costs listed are preliminary estimates.

HOLIDAY INN:

--$12 million

--154 rooms

--2,200 square feet of conference space

--Full service, meaning it will contain a restaurant/bar and offer room service

--Indoor pool

STAYBRIDGE SUITES:

--$10 million

--120 suites

--Indoor pool

CANDLEWOOD SUITES:

--$7.5 million

--85 to 100 suites

--Suites accessible for people with disabilities

--Indoor pool, fitness center

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