Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, September 17, 1995 TAG: 9509150010
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: G-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JEFF STURGEON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Hotel and motel rooms are multiplying faster than customers are checking in.
"We need a bigger pie," said Gerald Carter, general manager of the Holiday Inn-Tanglewood.
During the past 18 months, the opening of the Best Western Inn at Valley View and the reopening of the remodeled Hotel Roanoke, Hampton Inn Airport and Holiday Inn Express in Salem added about 570 rooms to the local supply, an increase of 16 percent. It brought the room supply to about 4,100.
And the announcement last month by Roanoke-based Eastern Motor Inns Inc. of a Hampton Inn to be built next to Lewis-Gale Hospital in Salem means 112 more rooms will be available by this time next year.
Unfortunately, the number of people checking in for a night's sleep is down more than 6 percent locally, according to Smith Travel Research in Hendersonville, Tenn.
"It's kind of like three gas stations on the same corner in some little town," said an exasperated William Carder, general manager of the Radisson Patrick Henry Hotel in Roanoke. "Total demand is down even though you have more rooms in the market. I mean, it's scary. It's not a good sign."
All this actually improves the fortunes of the traveler. Establishments are offering better discounts, room-and-meal deals and new travel packages in a bid to protect the bottom line.
There's evidence that some lesser-priced hotels see little reason for concern.
Craig Andersen, vice president of operations at Dominion Lodging Inc. in Daleville, said the average paid for a room is up, as is occupancy, at the company's Sleep Inn Tanglewood and that business is strong at the seven-month-old Best Western Inn at Valley View and company's two hotels in Lexington and Staunton.
"I don't see where the additional rooms has hurt anything," he said. His target customer, he said, is the "off-the-road" business or leisure traveler.
Granger Macfarlane, whose Eastern Motor Inns Inc. of Roanoke developed and operates the region's Hampton Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Colony House motels, said occupany rates at his properties "is strong; we've seen occupanies going up" though he declined to cite specific rates.
"We've seen an excellent summer with a lot of people on the road," Macfarlane said."Obviously it's been weighted largely to vacation travel but it has had a high mix of business people," specifically traveling women attracted to logding brands known for well-lit parking lots, high-intensity lighting in bathrooms and complimentary breakfasts of yogurt, fresh fruit and low-fat breads.
Eastern Motor Inn's $5.9 million investment in a six-story Hampton Inn next to Lewis-Gale Hospital reflects both optimism about the Roanoke Valley logding industry and spotting what Macfarlane terms an opportunity in an underserved market, he said. Besides the medical centers around Lewis-Gale and the Veterans hospitals, he cites numerous companies along Electric Road and in Salem plus the Salem sports complex as likely to feed his hotel with a steady flow of guests.
Hotels and motels across the state and nation, in contrast, report business is running slightly ahead of last year. Overall, 1995 seems likely to buttress last year's economic recovery from one of the worst industry slumps,, Smith Travel's executive vice president.
The Holiday Inn-Tanglewood's Carter has long called on local governments to better fund the Roanoke Valley Visitors and Convention Bureau. He is past president of the group's board.
Carter said he has urged localities to give the tourism promotion agency 10 percent of the money they collect through meals, lodging and admissions taxes, which last year totaled $11.3 million for Roanoke, Salem, Vinton and Roanoke and Botetourt counties alone. The bureau did not have figures for other localities.
Roanoke, by far the largest contributor, gave $500,000, or about 8 percent of what was collected in the tourism taxes. Botetourt County, the next largest, gave $107,500, or about 4 percent. Salem gave $25,000, about 1.5 percent. Craig County bought a $500 membership, but no other local governments financially support the agency.
Memo: ***CORRECTION***