Construction on Penticton's new Fairfield Inn & Suites advancing rapidly

There's a bit of a traffic bottleneck today on Eckhardt Avenue West near Orchard Avenue. It'll be there tomorrow too, and perhaps part of Wednesday as well.

But have a little patience. The on-site crew is pulling off a pretty big job. They're installing the sanitary sewer and water lines for a 98-room hotel.

Bruce Holm is the Director of Projects, Construction and Development for Kamloops-based Mundi Hotel Enterprise, and he briefed us this morning on what's new at the former site of the Penticton Bingo Palace.

"They're tying in the utilities today. It's the sanitary sewer and water lines that are being tied in now. We should be completed by Wednesday. We'll do one half of the street today (the westbound lane), one half tomorrow, and pave it on Wednesday, I believe."

And Holm says that if all goes according to plan, Penticton will have its brand new Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott before Christmas - open for business and fully operational.

"This particular hotel, we went into the ground in March, in order to get our foundation in. We anticipate opening by Christmas. It's an extremely aggressive schedule."

The 53,904 square foot facility will feature 98 rooms spread over four floors, a pool and hot tub, and, says Holm, "parking for the full complement of rooms." It'll also have breakfast service, and will be "built to the standards of the Marriott brand, which is quite elaborate."

"We've settled 90 percent of the trades already - roofing, drywall, taping, plumbing, electrical, that sort of thing," said Holm. "That means the contracts have been signed and they're either already at work or progressing into work as it becomes available."

"The main floor takes a little while longer. It's a higher ceiling and a lot more elaborate than the upper floors."

"We've prebuilt a lot of the walls, on site. In the next week to week and a half, we'll have the second floor on, and hopefully we'll be roofing in June. The stucco finish on the exterior will also be going in toward the end of June."

Holm says the project has been well received so far. "The city claims to want and need new hotels, and this fits in with exactly what they're looking for."

It's a fast build to be sure, and Holm says he doesn't foresee any holdups. "All our interiors have been chosen to match the Marriott brand, so we don't anticipate delays in those aspects."

The pool and hot tub aren't far off either. "The drawings for the hot tub and pool area are in for approval with the BC Health Department right now. When those have been approved, we'll proceed with building that section of the hotel as well and close in the pool and get it operational by the time we open."