By Ines Bebea
Barbara Glove, general manager of Homewood Suites, looks over one of the studio units in the new hotel on Monday. (Mike McCoy/Daily Republic)
FAIRFIELD - Whether for a family vacation or business trip, the two hotels under construction in Fairfield are banking on giving visitors the comforts of home away from home.
Furnished with full kitchens - refrigerators, silverware, stoves, microwaves and dishwashers - the Homewood Suites by Hilton and the Staybridge Suites in Green Valley will change the way guests think about their extended stays.
"There is nothing like the rooms we are offering in the market right now," said Denis Olson, president of Sonmar Development Corporation. "We feel that we can offer visitors to Napa and the surrounding areas affordable prices. Green Valley is an area that is expanding and very accessible by Interstate 80 and Interstate 680."
Homewood and Staybridge, which are located at 4755 Business Center Drive, are the first hotels in Northern California for the Fargo, N.D.-based company. Sonmar Development Corporation operates 46 other hotels in the Midwest. Homewood Suites will be a four-story building with 85 suites built as studios and one- or two-bedroom units. Each room will have a kitchen, queen size bed, sofa and flat screen television.
The soft opening for Homewood Suites will be July 19, and the grand opening is July 23.
The Staybridge hotel, a three-story building with 82 rooms, is scheduled to open in August.
"Guests of both hotels will be totally wowed by what we offer," said Barbara Glover, general manager of Homewood. "We're geared toward extended stays for families on vacation and business travelers. You will find amenities that you may not have at home."
Amenities in Homewood include an indoor pool, a basketball court, free laundry rooms, a business center and a meeting room. There will be a hot breakfast in the morning, as well as dinner with wine or beer Monday through Thursday, Glover said.
"Having these two new hotels means that we need to promote our area as a destination to both corporate and leisure travel," said Beth Javens, the new executive director of the Fairfield Hotel Association. "We have a very diverse visitors base, and it's good to have additional resources. We want to get the message out that we are in the Capital corridor and that we can offer different amenities for different clients."
Reach Ines Bebea at 427-6934 or ibebea@dailyrepublic.net.
