A six-story building isn't too common a sight along Route 28 in Centreville, but rising into the air there, next to the Fort Hill building and the McDonald's, is a new hotel.
It's a 95-room, Extended StayAmerica hotel being built at Upperridge and Fort drives, near Supervisor Michael R. Frey’s (R-Sully) former office. Work began in October and should be completed, either late this year or in early 2004, depending on the weather.
It's about the 16th Extended StayAmerica in Virginia and joins the two others already open in the local area, at Chantilly Crossing Shopping Center in Chantilly and in Fair Oaks, a half-mile from Fair Oaks Mall. The newest one — planned to be 75 feet high, with a beige-and-brown, imitation-stucco exterior and 103 parking spaces — is at 5920 Fort Drive in Centreville.
"We look for either a growing business community or one with an industrial base," said Mike Wilson, Extended StayAmerica's vice president of marketing. "We build in economically robust areas because that's where the people we serve go."
As the name suggests, this hotel is designed for extended-stay travelers — people relocating or on long-term job assignments, such as construction supervisors. Also in this category are those sent somewhere to train others and those receiving training.
Actually, another hotel originally planned to build on that site. In October 1999, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved construction of a Wingate Inn there. But plans fell through, and Extended StayAmerica purchased the 3.2-acre property.
"To the extent that it shows the business base is increasing and the support network they need to be successful [is here], it's good," said Frey. "From a tax-revenue and job standpoint, it's all good news."
This hotel is mainly geared for business people. Wilson says 75 percent of the guests are alone and about 30 percent are women. And, he said, Extended StayAmerica "cut out all extraneous amenities," such as bars, restaurants, meeting and convention facilities.
"If you're an extended-stay traveler, it's expensive to stay in a hotel and eat out all the time," explained Wilson. "So, here, you live more like you would at home. There's a washer and dryer in the hotel, and our rooms are more like a studio apartment — about 300 square feet — with a full kitchen, a two-burner stove top, microwave and refrigerator/freezer."
The rooms also come with pots, pans and utensils so guests may make themselves meals and snacks. And, said Wilson, "There's also a recliner, so you can sit on something besides the bed."
Extended StayAmerica serves a niche market, he said, in which the nationwide demand is twice the supply. As a result, said Wilson, "We're the fastest-growing, owned-and-operated — not franchised — hotel chain in American history. Nobody's ever built and owned some 465 hotels in eight years, like we have."
Guests pay $349/week or $75/night in the Chantilly Extended StayAmerica. It costs $5 more for a second person, and Wilson said these hotels are generally 25-30 percent under the market in their room prices.
"The travel business is down since 9/11, but we're seeing improvement and our hotels are going strong," said Wilson. About 30 percent of the guests come for leisure — many retired and on budgets. "We also do well around major hospitals, where patients' family members would stay," said Wilson. "Insurance adjusters, after a fire or flood, also stay in our hotels."