With food, drink and ceremonial fanfare, the ribbon was cut Dec. 3 during the grand opening celebration of Pipestone’s new hotel, Crossings by Grandstay.
Sheila Peterson, general manager, said the hotel has maintained between 75 and 90 percent occupancy since first opening for business Oct. 8.
“There are a couple times when we’ve had the whole hotel booked, like this weekend: there’s a huge wedding so we’re completely booked,” Peterson said.
Weddings and funerals have both added to the occupancy of the hotel’s 45 rooms but Peterson said they receive a lot of drive-by business.
“And also businessmen who used to stay out of town,” she said. “ComposiTech and Suzlon are big ones; American Red Cross, Ellison Meats. And Pipestone Vet is a new one of ours.”
Peterson and her staff of 14 part-time employees have earned the honor of being the most successful opening of a Crossings hotel, according to Rodney Lindquist, CEO of GrandStay Hospitality, LLC.
“Successful means the training, the orientation — when our corporate people come out and spend time with the general manager and the staff she’s hired,” Lindquist said. “This training session, this group under Sheila’s direction was by far the best — as smooth as it could be.”
The company began construction of the hotel in April, just as U.S. Marine/Bayliner was closing its doors and Suzlon had announced mass layoffs.
“I wasn’t worried about Bayliner because that industry has been on the bubble for a long time,” Lindquist said. “And wind energy — they could fire back up and go bigger. Wind energy is not going to go away. So that’s a pretty safe bet.
“There are other things anyway,” he added. “You’ve got to put all of that in the basket.”
Those other things include the site selection criteria used for Crossings hotels, primarily small, under-served markets, Lindquist said. Additional criteria working in Pipestone’s favor, Lindquist said, is that it’s a county seat with a hospital and a geographic location far enough between major markets.
“There isn’t a hotel of this quality for a long area around here,” he said. “It’s a long way to go to Sioux Falls (S.D.) if you want to stop and stay at a property like this.”
Lindquist started the hotel company in 1999. The company has 11 GrandStay hotels, which are extended-stay hotels constructed in markets with populations of at least 50,000. The Crossings by GrandStay brand holds a few extended-stay units that mimic apartments for those requiring longer visits, but primarily caters to the corporate and leisure crowd, Lindquist said.
The first Crossings opened a year ago and the Pipestone hotel was the company’s sixth Crossing.
“We expect to add about nine more in the next 12 months in Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota,” Lindquist said.
The weak economy provides the company with growth opportunities because Crossings hotels are primarily a conversion brand that utilizes existing hotel sites. Three former Country Inns, for example, are now Crossings.
“When there is a market that justifies construction, we will build new,” Lindquist said. “But without opportunities going forward, if we have 100 Crossings, we might have 10 new ones and 90 conversions. We have a huge opportunity with this down economy for Crossings to grow. So we’re seizing that opportunity here and pressing on with it.”
