City’s hospitality industry rosier with new projects, plans

The one-year anniversary of the closing of the 253-room Clarion Hotel and Conference Center on the west side of Columbus was Tuesday.

That was an unfortunate moment for the local hospitality scene because not only was it the loss of a longtime hotel and many rooms, but also a primary meeting space for conventions, weddings and other events. The Clarion had a 1,000-person capacity for conferences and events.

Fortunately, several significant steps to offset that loss are occurring.

The 96-room Fairfield Inn & Suites opened in late June on the city’s west side at 2820 Merchant’s Mile. The building measures 50,928 square feet — double the size of typical Fairfield Inns. Notably, it features a 3,125-square-foot meeting space that can accommodate 300 people — making it the largest conference facility in the city. Other amenities include an indoor swimming pool (something the Clarion had), a 24-hour fitness center, a small bar and an outdoor fire pit and barbecue grill area.

This fall, the former Comfort Inn & Suites will reopen after more than a year, but as the 100-room Holiday Inn Columbus at 2485 W. Jonathan Moore Pike, also on the west side. Amenities will include a full-service restaurant and bar.

Also, the city has hired a consultant to assess the viability of a downtown hotel and convention center on Second Street, with the Columbus Area Visitors Center helping underwrite that $36,000 study. Even with the aforementioned additions of the Fairfield Inn & Suites and Holiday Inn Columbus, additional meeting and conference space is needed to compensate for what was lost with the Clarion’s closure, city leaders said.

Combined, these are significant and welcome developments in the Columbus hospitality industry that play well into the city’s appeal as a business meeting and tourism destination.

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