Apr. 2, 2008 -CHAMPAIGN -- Developers are planning to build about 200 additional hotel suites in Champaign, all catering to visitors planning longer stays.

Construction will start this spring on two new extended-stay hotels one to be a Candlewood Suites at 1917 Moreland Blvd., and the other to be a Value Place hotel at 1212 W. Anthony Drive.

Candlewood Suites' developer, Main Street Builders of DeForest, Wis., hopes to have its new Champaign property open in six to seven months, said Anthony DeMarte, Main Street builders vice president.

It will be a three-story building of just over 43,000 square feet, with 83 suites in the $60 to $90 rate range, he said.

Candlewood Suites' properties feature studios, one-bedroom and studio double suites. All rooms have kitchenettes, and the Champaign property will have a workout facility and a gazebo with a grill to accommodate people on longer stays, DeMarte said.

Main Street Builders develops hotel properties in Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota, DeMarte said.

Champaign "was identified as a great Candlewood market," he added.

Value Place, which will be built in the vicinity of the Sam's Club store, will be a four-story, 42,984-square-foot property with 121 units, said Shawn Hudson, project manager with the contractor, Millstone Inc., Indianapolis.

Construction of Value Place properties typically takes about six months, and should be starting soon in Champaign, he said.

"Right now, we're waiting on the weather," Hudson added.

This will be the first Value Place property in Illinois. Roger Cox, project manager for the Tennessee-based developer, Mitch Cox Development Group, said the company has licenses for 11 Value Place hotels, and Champaign will be its third to open.

"We think it's a good market because of the university and the various industries," he said. "It appears to be a stable economy." Cox said his company is hoping to have the Champaign Value Place open by Oct. 1.

Value Place offers accommodations in three size units catering to single-occupancies up to families of four, and all have their own kitchenettes. The weekly rates range from $229 to $259 a week, Cox said.

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