| Leland, NC
Home Suite Home: Comfort Suites Comes to Leland
By Bryan Strange
Time and time again, Leland Holdings, LLC, owners of the brand-new Comfort Suites in Leland, made the decision to upgrade. They chose to upgrade in every aspect of the hotel where they had the option. Brick or vinyl siding? Brick. Granite or fiberglass showers? Granite. Hardwood or laminate flooring in the lobby? Hardwood. Standard or flat-panel 32-inch TVs? Flat panel…no, make that 37-inch flat panels. Indoor or outdoor pool? Indoor saline pool (so it creates no chlorine smell inside the hotel). Bagels or a hot breakfast? How about one better: A great, hot, fresh, breakfast cooked each morning, and with the types of menu items one would expect from a restaurant.
These luxuries are only the beginning. The delight is in the details. The Comfort Suites offers guests free wireless Internet access throughout the hotel, free coffee service 24-hours a day, upgraded bed sizes, extra tall ceilings (10 and 12-footers) and much more.
With all of these amenities, which appeal to coastal vacationers as well business travelers, one would think that the developers had someone on the inside of the hotel business; someone who knows first-hand what hotel guests demand.
Well, actually they did. One of the partners in the project is the hotel’s General Manager, Barry Eagle. Eagle has been in the hotel business for 13 years, working in major cities from Charlotte, Raleigh to Charleston. An opportunity with MHI Hotels, Inc. brought Eagle to Wilmington.
Eagle served for seven years as the Area Director of Sales and Marketing for the hotel group, managing sales and marketing efforts of the Hilton, Shell Island and Riverview Suites.
“We put a lot of thought into this hotel…a lot of thought,” says Eagle. He, along with the other members of Leland Holdings were integral in the design of the hotel, utilizing his insight in order to allow the hotel to offer exactly the type of experience that visitors will want. From the location to the structure itself to the room amenities, every detail has been considered.
The development member, of Leland Holdings, LLC is John Sandlin, a Wilmington local. The Development Team also included Harold K. Jordon & Co., Inc. as General Contractor and Constructive Building Solutions as a construction consultant to Sandlin.
Being the general manager and a stakeholder in the company, Eagle has selected the four key items that through his years of experience he has come to see as the most crucial aspects of a successful hotel. He will run the Comfort Suites according to those items. First, check-in must be fast, friendly and accurate. Second, the hotel must always be immaculate, in every The developers see the communities such as Magnolia Greens, Waterford, Brunswick Forest and Compass Pointe to be central to their business plan. Those coming to explore their potential future homes need a place to stay. They will desire the comforts of home, and will want to be close to the communities they are courting and to the attractions of downtown. Downtown Wilmington is, of course, right across the bridge, and fewer stoplights stand between the new hotel and Water Street than many of the other hotels located in Wilmington.
“It [the decision to put the hotel in Leland] was totally intuition,” says Beach area were also motivating factors in the decision to build the Comfort Suites. “We are working with Magnolia Greens to offer golf rate deals to our visitors,” says Eagle. “Upon its completion, we are also looking forward to working with Cape Fear National.”
The developers were also well aware that the City of Wilmington was planning on establishing a convention center in the heart of downtown Wilmington. The special events, shows and sporting events that will eventually take place there will surely drive business to Leland and the hotel.
The decision to build a Comfort Suites basically boiled down to a familiarity with the clientele that will be staying in Leland, as well as Eagle’s knowledge of the trend in desires of today’s average traveler. “Our hotel is an all-suite property. People are looking for rooms that are more spacious. They want that home away from home — the larger bed, the couch, the comforts of home; they want all of that,” Eagle says.
One may think that the timing of this hotel is off, considering the economy and the slowdown in development. Eagle’s response is, “We don’t see a slowdown. People are calling. Leland is still growing.” Indeed, people are calling. The hotel did not even open its doors until June, and already five groups had booked the hotel in order to hold events in the hotel’s 800- square-foot meeting space. The hotel allows guests to bring in their own food and choose their own caterer.
The Comfort Suites hotel in Magnolia Greens offers vacationers, business travelers, future residents and passersby the room to stretch out and relax on the Cape Fear Coast. The hotel offers all the comforts of home and also some luxuries that won’t be found in just an average home.
Reservations can be made by calling the hotel, (910) 383-3300 or online at www.comfortsuitesmagnoliagreens.com.
By Bryan Strange
Time and time again, Leland Holdings, LLC, owners of the brand-new Comfort Suites in Leland, made the decision to upgrade. They chose to upgrade in every aspect of the hotel where they had the option. Brick or vinyl siding? Brick. Granite or fiberglass showers? Granite. Hardwood or laminate flooring in the lobby? Hardwood. Standard or flat-panel 32-inch TVs? Flat panel…no, make that 37-inch flat panels. Indoor or outdoor pool? Indoor saline pool (so it creates no chlorine smell inside the hotel). Bagels or a hot breakfast? How about one better: A great, hot, fresh, breakfast cooked each morning, and with the types of menu items one would expect from a restaurant.
These luxuries are only the beginning. The delight is in the details. The Comfort Suites offers guests free wireless Internet access throughout the hotel, free coffee service 24-hours a day, upgraded bed sizes, extra tall ceilings (10 and 12-footers) and much more.
With all of these amenities, which appeal to coastal vacationers as well business travelers, one would think that the developers had someone on the inside of the hotel business; someone who knows first-hand what hotel guests demand.
Well, actually they did. One of the partners in the project is the hotel’s General Manager, Barry Eagle. Eagle has been in the hotel business for 13 years, working in major cities from Charlotte, Raleigh to Charleston. An opportunity with MHI Hotels, Inc. brought Eagle to Wilmington.
Eagle served for seven years as the Area Director of Sales and Marketing for the hotel group, managing sales and marketing efforts of the Hilton, Shell Island and Riverview Suites.
“We put a lot of thought into this hotel…a lot of thought,” says Eagle. He, along with the other members of Leland Holdings were integral in the design of the hotel, utilizing his insight in order to allow the hotel to offer exactly the type of experience that visitors will want. From the location to the structure itself to the room amenities, every detail has been considered.
The development member, of Leland Holdings, LLC is John Sandlin, a Wilmington local. The Development Team also included Harold K. Jordon & Co., Inc. as General Contractor and Constructive Building Solutions as a construction consultant to Sandlin.
Being the general manager and a stakeholder in the company, Eagle has selected the four key items that through his years of experience he has come to see as the most crucial aspects of a successful hotel. He will run the Comfort Suites according to those items. First, check-in must be fast, friendly and accurate. Second, the hotel must always be immaculate, in every The developers see the communities such as Magnolia Greens, Waterford, Brunswick Forest and Compass Pointe to be central to their business plan. Those coming to explore their potential future homes need a place to stay. They will desire the comforts of home, and will want to be close to the communities they are courting and to the attractions of downtown. Downtown Wilmington is, of course, right across the bridge, and fewer stoplights stand between the new hotel and Water Street than many of the other hotels located in Wilmington.
“It [the decision to put the hotel in Leland] was totally intuition,” says Beach area were also motivating factors in the decision to build the Comfort Suites. “We are working with Magnolia Greens to offer golf rate deals to our visitors,” says Eagle. “Upon its completion, we are also looking forward to working with Cape Fear National.”
The developers were also well aware that the City of Wilmington was planning on establishing a convention center in the heart of downtown Wilmington. The special events, shows and sporting events that will eventually take place there will surely drive business to Leland and the hotel.
The decision to build a Comfort Suites basically boiled down to a familiarity with the clientele that will be staying in Leland, as well as Eagle’s knowledge of the trend in desires of today’s average traveler. “Our hotel is an all-suite property. People are looking for rooms that are more spacious. They want that home away from home — the larger bed, the couch, the comforts of home; they want all of that,” Eagle says.
One may think that the timing of this hotel is off, considering the economy and the slowdown in development. Eagle’s response is, “We don’t see a slowdown. People are calling. Leland is still growing.” Indeed, people are calling. The hotel did not even open its doors until June, and already five groups had booked the hotel in order to hold events in the hotel’s 800- square-foot meeting space. The hotel allows guests to bring in their own food and choose their own caterer.
The Comfort Suites hotel in Magnolia Greens offers vacationers, business travelers, future residents and passersby the room to stretch out and relax on the Cape Fear Coast. The hotel offers all the comforts of home and also some luxuries that won’t be found in just an average home.
Reservations can be made by calling the hotel, (910) 383-3300 or online at www.comfortsuitesmagnoliagreens.com.
