New hotels planned near Patriots Point

Columbia's Fowler Hospitality plans to build three hotels with a total of 385 rooms, most likely under Marriott brands, near Patriots Point in Mount Pleasant. The total cost of the project is placed at $56 million, and Mount Pleasant's Planning Commission approved the whole thing this week.

From the Charleston Regional Business Journal:

Some planning commission members questioned whether the area could absorb 385 new hotel rooms, but (Fowler Hospitality managing member Sam) Fowler said the Mount Pleasant hotel market is strong, with occupancy rates around 72 percent. He expects the area to continue to grow over the next few years, he said, and the hotel market will grow with it.

“When you build a hotel like this, you’re really looking at the longer term,” Fowler said.

The hotels are to be located on eight acres off of Wingo Way, between the Omar Shrine Temple and the Quality Inn, near the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge. Together they will total 231,000 square feet.

One of the hotels, a six-story building with 157 rooms, already is approved by Marriott as a Springhill Suites, Fowler said. Construction on that hotel could begin late this year or early next year, he said, with the opening expected around the spring of 2010.