Construction begins on $9.5 million, four-story Hilton hotel near Tri-Cities Airport
Nearly five years ago, Vijay Patel and his son Taran make a promise to the Port of Pasco when they signed a land lease to build a hotel next to the Tri-Cities Airport.
A-1 Hospitality, their Pasco-based hotel development and management company, would not only build a Courtyard by Marriott at the airport, they’d break ground on a second hotel within five years.
On Monday, the Patels, their family and supporters gathered in the rain outside the Courtyard to deliver on that promise.
A-1 Hospitality broke ground on a 107-room Home2 Suites by Hilton Hotel at 2203 W. Argent St., immediately next door to the Courtyard. Both hotels sit on land A-1 leases from the port.
Taran Patel said A-1 beat its five-year deadline by three months, despite significant setbacks.
The 99-room Courtyard first opened in February 2020, just weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic prompted statewide shutdowns that left hotels virtually empty. The Courtyard stayed open with a skeleton crew by offering low-cost rooms to medical workers who wanted to avoid the danger of bringing the virus home to their families.
The port, its landlord, was patient with its struggling new tenant, he said..
“Fingers crossed that doesn’t happen again,” Patel said.
Open in 2026, maybe 2025
Vijay Patel said he’s been promised by the contractor, Fowler Construction, that the new hotel will be ready for guests in 18 months. He’s hoping for 12.
“I really want to thank the community for supporting us,” he said, noting that Home2 Suites is the family-owned company’s third construction project in Pasco.
In addition to Courtyard, it built the Holiday Inn Express at the HAPO Center off Road 68. A-1 has an even more ambitious project in the planning stage fore Kennewick.
It hopes to build a six-story, Aloft-branded hotel at the Three Rivers Convention Center.
For now, A-1 is focused on the entrance to the Pasco airport. The $9.5 million, four-story hotel is being financed by the Bank of Idaho, which is preparing to build its first local branch a short distance from the hotel.
Home2 Suites is the bank’s largest-ever investment in the state of Washington, its loan officer said.
A-1 signed a 75-year land lease for the site with the port. Terms include a 50-year initial term and a 25-year option to renew. The rent includes a base of $28,000 per year plus a percentage of gross revenue.
The 2023 deal also gave A-1 the exclusive right to build a third hotel at the Tri-Cities Business Park for 10 years or until the Home2 Suites achieves an average 80% annual occupancy rate.
Keeping Pasco ‘awesome’
Port officials were thrilled to see the project get started.
The second hotel will only enhance the visibility of the airport, said Jean Ryckman, chair of the commission. It overlooks the airport and Runway 3L, which runs from the northwest to the southeast.
Economic development geeks will appreciate the distant view of Darigold Inc.’s $600+ million processing plant taking shape miles to the north.
“This project will enhance the visibility of our airport,” she said.
Pasco Mayor Pete Serrano pledged the city’s continuing support to A-1, which he called an excellent partner committed to building airport facilities and to promoting tourism in the region.
“We will do everything we can to keep Pasco awesome and keep it growing,” he said.
Kevin Lewis, president of Visit Tri-Cities, the region’s tourism agency, affirmed that the 107 rooms are needed.
Nearly 4 million visitors spent a collective $630 million in the Tri-Cities in 2023, leaving $77.5 million in local government coffers via local taxes. About 40 hotels offer more than 4,200 (and growing) hotel rooms.
A-1 owns or manages 15 hotels, with properties in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, New Mexico and Texas.