El Paso hotels renovating to keep up with new ones
It’s hard to miss all the new hotels that have popped up in El Paso.
But that’s left some of the older ones spending millions to keep up.
For decades, the old Embassy Suites on Interstate 10 across from Bassett Place was one of the city’s premiere properties. But in recent years, it fell into disrepair and lost its franchise.
“Back in 2012, unfortunately, the building condition had dropped enough that Hilton and Embassy Suites took the flag away, or the brand as we call it,” said Larry Condra, general manager at El Paso Suites, which was recently purchased by a company called AWS and is now undergoing a multi-million dollar renovation. “It’s going to be about a $10 to $12 million dollar renovation. The folks won’t know it from what it used to be. It will be a new icon on I-10.”
Condra said it will include a 100-percent room renovations and a completely remodeled atrium.
“Obviously, Embassy is a big brand,” he said. “And then with all of the new product that has come into the market here, its very important to stay fresh and modern.”
Rick Lafluer, president of the El Paso Hotel-Motel Association, told ABC-7 there are more than a thousand new hotel rooms just in the airport area since 2007, including a Homewood Suites, a Holiday Inn Express and a Staybridge Suites.
“We’ve got to keep up with the Joneses and keep it fresh,” Condra said.
El Paso Suites isn’t the only hotel undergoing renovations. The old Holiday Inn on Sunland Park and I-10, now the Country Inn and Suites, is undergoing a $3 million dollar renovation, and the old Holiday Inn Airport has recently undergone a multi-million dollar upgrade to become a Best Western.
“When the customer has more choices, the product and the service as well has to be really upscale to keep competitive with the rest of the products,” Condra said.
Condra told ABC-7 that the El Paso Suites already has a license agreement with Embassy Suites by Hilton. The plan is to fully reopen under that flag by the end of the year.
