Downtown Seattle to be transformed with new hotels soon

Downtown Seattle is all set to undergo a major transformation with several new hotels in the pipeline. Seattle’s status as a flourishing commercial district is attracting hotel developers in a big way. The Stewart Street in downtown, which is known for its strategic location between Amazon’s growing campus and the State Convention Center, is being targeted by hotel developers in a massive way for their numerous projects.

The parking lots along Stewart Street have now become prized possession for hotel developers eying major expansion. Media reports recently said that above 2,000 hotel rooms are being constructed now. These include apartments or condominiums as well. With many hotels coming up in a big way the station in Denny Triangle will be transformed into a base camp for tourists and business travelers visiting Seattle.

The reports said that one hotel-office project broke ground recently. Work on three mixed-use hotel projects are in their various stages of completion. This includes largest convention hotel coming up north of San Francisco.

The demand for hotels has been rapidly increasing in Seattle and hotel developers are trying to fulfill this with new constructions. According to media reports, the number of hotels being constructed in downtown Seattle will see room prices and impressive occupancy rates meeting or even surpassing last year’s record. Presently, downtown Seattle and its neighborhood are home to nearly 12,000 hotel rooms.

Many real estate experts and analysts say that the hotels are now continuously increasing the room rates strongly. The only reason being the hotel industry doesn’t have to struggle with recession. For the first time since late 1980s the occupancy rates in downtown Seattle is likely to exceed 80 percent in 2014. The analysts said that the city is seeing better times now with performance levels being quite strong. This has made new hotels construction quite feasible.

Here’s brief outlook on numerous hotel projects currently underway in downtown Seattle. Ground for a 222-room Hilton Garden Inn has already broken last summer. The hotel is coming up on Hill7 at Stewart Street and is scheduled to be opened by mid-2015. This upscale hotel is mainly aimed at business travelers who don’t prefer staying at a full-service hotel such as Westin, Sheraton or Grand Hyatt.

The Stewart Street is acknowledged as downtown Seattle’s “gateway street”. The expansion of State Convention Center situated south of Howell Street has also necessitated the construction of new hotels.

The proposed 1,680-room convention hotel is being constructed at Ninth Avenue and Stewart Street. The customers will also be offered 152 subsidized apartments being constructed within this project. The convention hotel is likely to be opened in 2017, and is believed to be the largest project in the corridor.

Presently, the Seattle Sheraton comprising of 1,236 rooms is offering most rooms to the customers as well as largest contiguous meeting space among various hotels in downtown Seattle.

The Daola Tower is also coming up at 1121 Stewart Street. This 42-storey hotel-condo project is likely to be completed and opened for customers in 2017. The Daola luxury boutique hotel comprising of 78 rooms, retail and restaurants will be located on first seven floors, while the remaining 35 floors would comprise of condominiums.