New hotel proposed on Martin Way

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OLYMPIA –– City officials talked on Monday about a new 122-room, four-story hotel that would go up on Olympia’s east side, if construction and design plans are approved.

The hotel, WoodSpring Suites Olympia, is the latest in a growing collection of brands owned by Choice Hotels International, Inc., which acquired it in 2018. Company officials said in a Site Plan Review Committee meeting on Monday the Olympia property would be the brand’s seventh property in the Pacific Northwest.

“It’s a relatively new brand here in the Pacific Northwest,” said Matthew Hough, the president of Kirkland-based CPH Consultants. “They’re extended stay-type hotels, so there’s on-site amenities. Each unit has kitchenettes, bedrooms, the usual.”

The site, located at 3901 Martin Way E., is a 2.2-acre lot. The hotel is geared towards long-term travelers and would include on-site laundry and a gym, according to a letter from Hough to city officials dated June 3.

The real estate development firm on the project, West77 Partners, also developed the WoodSpring Suites hotels in Everett, Redmond and Tukwila, as well as the Hilton Garden Inn Seattle Bellevue Downtown. They also developed other properties in Salt Lake City and Park City, Utah.

City officials want to see more pedestrian pathways and bikeways on the property, a requirement for projects that include more than 30 parking spaces. The additions for walking and bike space would satisfy requirements of the project site plan.

“You have a unique opportunity with the Chehalis Western Trail, located just directly to the  west of the site,” said Lydia Moorehead, a planner with the city. “We would like to see a connection to the trail, and this would satisfy the parking code requirement and the design review standards. It would be a good way to satisfy both of those.”

Another facet of the property’s developments include re-planting trees on the property, which would fulfill a requirement for city-wide tree density. Olympia requires 33 units of trees per acre, which is determined by the size of the trees on a parcel. City forestry officials said after reviewing the site plan that they didn’t anticipate any trees would remain on the parcel after development. The developer would also be required to hire a forester or arborist, who would determine the required tree density and protective measures.

[The developer will] “be required to plant roughly 60 trees, plus or minus” said Shelly Bentley, an arborist for the city.

West77 Partners, Chehalis Western Trail, CPH Consultants, Matthew Hough, WoodSpring Suites Hotels, Choice Hotels International, Inc., new hotel, hotel, Lydia Moorehead, Shelly Bently, arborist

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