Renovations and expansion to the Comfort Inn on Rt. 32 near the southbound Thruway interchange will move forward after the Town of Saugerties Planning Board unanimously approved the plan.
The board granted the proposal a conditional approval after it received assurance from Sean McCloskey, a representative for Hershberg and Hershberg, an Albany-based civil engineering firm, that there would be no changes to signage and no major changes or additions to the exterior lighting on the hotel building or in the parking lot.
“The only change to signage will be a Comfort Inn sign that will be moved from an exterior wall to a portico,” said McCloskey.
The plan, first proposed at last month’s Planning Board meeting by hotel owner Danny Patel, calls for an addition to the south end of the hotel totaling just over 3,000 square feet. Once completed, it will house an indoor pool, exercise room and three additional guest rooms. The addition will also include an elevator for ADA access and a new portico.
Patel told the board at last month’s meeting that Comfort Inn’s parent company, Choice Hotels, is ordering its franchisees to complete these renovations by Sept. 2014. The idea is to compete with rivals like Holiday Inn and Hampton Inn, in the hotly contested midrange hotel market.
Patel has owned the hotel since 2007.
McCloskey said construction could begin this winter.
Planner Paul Andreassen said it was a good project for the town, and that it would really improve the property.
Chairperson Howard Post was also complimentary.
“They did a great job with this plan,” he said. “This renovation will be a great asset to the town by improving an already attractive property and raising our tax base.”
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