200 new hotel rooms are coming to Beaufort. Here’s what’s being built
Beaufort soon will have more options for business travelers and families of new Marines looking for a place to stay in the city.
Two new hotels are beginning construction along a busy thoroughfare, totaling about 200 rooms.
SpringHill Suites will break ground this month at 2227 Boundary St., with construction expected to require 14 months.
The 111-room hotel is owned by the same group as the neighboring Holiday Inn and Suites. Operators hope to attract business travelers who could use the Holiday Inn’s meeting and restaurant space.
At Parris Island Gateway and Trask Parkway, a Tru by Hilton Hotel will add another 92 rooms. Developers have said the proximity to Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort and the Spanish Moss Trail made the site attractive.
The foundation work has begun, and the hotel will join the recently opened Home2 Suites as part of a development expected eventually to include retail stores or restaurants.
The two new projects come as local hospitality industry leaders have expressed concern over declining hotel occupancy rates and difficulty attracting and keeping employees, issues they assign to the rise of short-term rentals. A report this year from the Beaufort Area Hospitality Association, a nonprofit organization representing the lodging and restaurant industry, said hotel occupancy rates had dipped from a high of 58 percent in 2016 to a “critical low” of 49.1 percent during the first quarter of this year.
The group has lobbied local governments for more regulations for short-term rentals and to cap the number allowed in certain areas. Short-term rental operators have dismissed the concerns as an overt attempt by hotel operators to push out competition.
There are about 1,400 hotel rooms in northern Beaufort County. Occupancy averaged 56.5 percent through September despite the slow start to the year and including the evacuation order during Hurricane Dorian, according to the Greater Beaufort-Port Royal Convention and Visitors Bureau.
The number is expected to finish comparable or slightly below the 55.9 percent occupancy in 2018, said Robb Wells, the tourism bureau’s president and CEO.
The market is driven heavily by visitors traveling to boot camp graduation at Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island. Hotels have targeted business groups to try to fill empty rooms other times of the week.
“New properties coming to market will infuse further development and adds to the potential to diversify our visitor base even more,” Wells said.
SpringHill Suites is a Marriott brand and should attract travelers who otherwise stay in Bluffton or Hilton Head to earn points through the company’s rewards program, said Vimal Desai, chief operations officer of HMV Management.
HMV owns the Holiday Inn and a hotel in Savannah and is invested in other hotel projects and shopping center developments. The company also plans an extended-stay hotel in Beaufort.
Desai’s father, Mahesh Desai, bought his first hotel after moving to Beaufort more than 40 years ago and has owned and operated as many as a dozen, his son said.
“His dream was always to have a Marriott,” Vimal Desai said. “We’re excited to get this rolling.”
The SpringHill Suites has been in planning the past three years after a 79-room Econo Lodge was demolished at the site. The five-story hotel will be built right on the road in accordance with the city’s new building code.
Desai, who serves on the city’s Tourism Development Advisory Committee, said the developers have worked closely with city officials to fine tune plans while the owners secured financing and architectural drawings were drafted to conform to Marriott standards.
Desai, who helped found Beaufort Area Hospitality Association and sits on its board, said he’s worked with his hotel staff on how to stand out in the face of competition from short-term rentals and other new hotel projects
“It’s definitely a concern,” Desai said. “But I know Marriott is a great brand, and they have brand loyalty.”
This story was originally published November 13, 2019 at 4:30 AM.
