Dec. 04–Next spring or early summer, a longstanding hotel will gain a new name and, its manager believes, a brighter future.
“The staff here is ecstatic,” said Troy DeRosier, general manager of the Boise Hotel and Conference Center. “You don’t know how long we’ve been waiting for this.”
DeRosier started at the hotel as a sales representative three years ago, shortly before the former Holiday Inn went into foreclosure.
After more than two years of bank ownership and no chain affiliation, the 116-room hotel at 3300 S. Vista Ave. is set to become the Wyndham Garden Boise Airport.
The hotel’s more than 60 employees will keep their jobs, DeRosier said. Castle Ranch Steakhouse and the Sports Page Bar also will stay, but with an increased emphasis on Idaho products, especially wines, he said.
But the rooms will undergo a near-total makeover, with new beds, other furniture, high-definition TVs with 42-inch flat screens, desks with USB ports, and granite bathroom countertops, he said.
The first batch of 25 rooms is expected to be completed in mid-January, he said, with the rest completed in phases to minimize the impact on guests. The future of two other hotel buildings at the site has yet to be determined.
Room prices, now ranging from $64 to $79, will likely go up to fit the upgrades and the market, DeRosier said. Specifics have not been determined.
He has confidence the renovations and rebranding will yield higher occupancy rates, including an influx of first-time guests drawn by the Wyndham Garden brand.
“That’s the primary reason you go with a brand,” he said.
The hotel’s competitors are chain members with strong name recognition, he said.
“We have a good hotel, but it doesn’t have the name draw. Boise Hotel and Conference Center doesn’t mean anything to you if you’ve never been to Boise,” he said.
The Wyndham affiliation was first reported by the Idaho Business Review.
Kristin Rodine: 377-6447
