Hotelier Gordon Elliott signed on to open a Springfield location of Best Western International’s new modern lodging concept.
Dubbed Vib - and pronounced Vibe - the concept is designed to appeal to millennials with a first floor dedicated to social spaces, such as open areas to hold conversations, technology and gaming sections, and food and beverage options. Rooms are smaller but unique, with modern furnishings and design elements that include bright colors, larger window views and electronics.
“The concept is really a hot one for Best Western,” Elliott said of the brand launched in October. “It is so different for the millennials that it’s had great catch-on with them.”
Through Elliott Lodging Ltd., Elliott said he expects to close within 30 days on the purchase of land at Sunshine Street just east of Glenstone Avenue that previously housed his San Francisco Oven restaurant. Elliott sold the 1.2-acre property to Mountain Grove-based First Bancshares Inc. (OTCQB: FBSI) in November, but plans to build a branch on the land have changed.
First Home Bank, which demolished the former restaurant, instead plans to open a branch this month down the street on Sunshine, said Joe James, the bank’s executive vice president (see sidebar). He noted Elliott’s interest in the property was a factor in the decision.
Declining to estimate project costs, Elliott said construction of the five-floor, 90-room hotel would start early next year with plans to open around the beginning of 2017. He said the entry fee for the concept is $50,000, followed by 5 percent royalties, as well as advertising fees.
“I talked them into letting me put one in Springfield as the first one in a smaller market,” Elliott said, noting the concept is largely taking shape on the coasts but no hotels have opened yet.
He said the Springfield Vib hotel would be the first in the Midwest and would be among the first to open for Best Western’s new concept.
Elliott took over operations of the San Francisco Oven in the wake of restaurateur Bruce Swisshelm’s March 2012 bankruptcy. Elliott, who shuttered the restaurant prior to the sale to First Home Bank,
had planned to reopen it at his north Springfield Lamplighter Inn & Suites, but he said this morning plans are on hold until next year.
Elliott Lodging recently rebranded the Comfort Inn & Suites at 3370 E. Battlefield Road to the Clarion Inn & Suites flag. The Baymont Inn & Suites at 3776 S. Glenstone Ave., which Elliott co-owns with Sam Hamra, also will switch to the Comfort Inn brand this summer, according to
Springfield Business Journal archives.
