In Tuesday’s paper, C-VILLE reported that a Staunton-based hotel developer had plans for a 137-room Homewood Suites at W. Rio Rd. Coupled with plans for another, potentially taller, hotel on W. Main St., that meant a potential for nearly 400 new hotel units on the local market. And that was a conservative estimate.
One unanswered question we had concerned hotel plans for Stonefield, the former Albemarle Place development on U.S. 29. Heritage Hospitality partner Scott Goldenberg said he discussed the Homewood Suites with Stonefield developer Edens & Avant, but the two parties could not reach consensus. With Homewood Suites bound for a different site, was Stonefield looking for another hotel developer?
No, said Tom Gallagher, a principal with Edens & Avant, who spoke with C-VILLE following an Albemarle County Planning Commission meeting last night.
"We’re working with MacFarlane Partners, from Richmond," said Gallagher. "The project is a Hyatt Place." Gallagher estimated that the site would have 137 rooms.
So, there you have it. A few hotels in the works, with two combining for 274 rooms, and separated by fewer than two miles.