Elliott Lodging adds second Candlewood Suites hotel

He’s building two almost identical Candlewood Suites in Springfield to go along with the hotel he built in Joplin last year.

Both hotels are designed by Slone Architects and each will be 43,000 square feet, four-stories and $5 million to build.

One is near Interstate 44 on North Glenstone Avenue and the other is facing James River Expressway near the intersection of National Avenue and Republic Road.

The Glenstone hotel is under construction and should be open by March. Construction on the south-side location should begin in spring and be complete by the beginning of 2008.

The 2.1-acre parcel, which Elliott purchased through Wilhoit Properties broker Ken Schwab for $1 million a few months ago, is adjacent to newly built restaurants Ruby Tuesday and Uncle Bently’s and to Gallery Eleven, a $1.19 million shopping center that’s under construction.

It’s also near Cox South hospital – a big draw for Elliott – and has plenty of out-of-town traffic roll past it now that James River Expressway meets up with Interstate 44 west of town.

“It’s a hot area, so it’s a perfect place for us to put a south location,” Elliott said.

Elliott owns seven other Springfield hotels, including Best Western properties and a Baymont Inn & Suites, but he said the Candlewood Suites would fill a need for extended stay facilities that cater to business travelers.

Nightly room rates will be $80 to $110, with discounts for extended stay, he said.

“These things are growing like fire,” Elliott said of Candlewood Suites, which he franchises from Intercontinental Hotels through Elliott Lodging LLC. “They’ve probably got a couple hundred in the pipeline right now.”

Once the Republic Road Candlewood Suites is open, Elliott figures he’ll own more than 1,100 hotel rooms in Springfield.

“We’re pretty spread out over the market,” Elliott said. “Our analysis showed we weren’t into the upper end of the market. We covered the middle and we have some budget, but this takes us into a new market share, so we’re not hurting what we’re already doing.”

Elliott mentioned two criteria for choosing his Candlewood Suites locations: They had to be in bustling business districts, and they had to be near major highways.

The Glenstone site has long met those requirements, but the Republic Road spot only recently became appealing, he said.