A two-story Comfort Inn and Suites under construction in downtown Mesa will be the area’s first new hotel in a generation.
The 12,830-square-foot, 46-room hotel will replace the aging Copper State Motel at 651 E. Main St. near the Mesa Arizona Temple. The property also housed some trailers, which were cleared to make room for a pool and retention basin.
The property’s owners couldn’t not be reached for comment.
Mani Subra, president of Scottsdale architecture firm Design One that designed the hotel, said he’s not sure how long it will take to build the $2 million hotel, which broke ground earlier this week, but it could be ready for visitors as early as eight months. “I cannot say because it depends on so many factors,” he said. The Comfort Inn will feature suites, a swimming pool, and a so-called “exercise trail” made of decomposed granite that will wind through part of the property.
Robert Brinton, executive director of the Mesa Convention and Visitors Bureau, said there isn’t much demand for additional hotel space downtown, but the Comfort Inn will offer an alternative to the expensive hotels nearby like the Marriott and the Best Western Inn as well as the inexpensive and aging motels.
“It’s a good niche that he’s carving out for himself,” he said.
Harold Decker, a senior economic development specialist, said he thinks there’s more of a demand for more hotel space than people realize.
“I hear from people all the time talking about the fact that we need higher end quality hotels,” he said.
Decker said he think the new Comfort Inn will prove most valuable to business travelers because the chains gives discounts for such guests.
