Planned Paine Field hotels to offer park-and-fly perks

EVERETT — An Everett firm plans to build two Marriott-brand hotels on Airport Road near Paine Field’s new passenger terminal.

“We’re hoping to break ground early this winter and then open in 12 to 18 months,” said Warren Beach, vice president of operations at SMJ Management.

A 128-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott and a 74-unit TownPlace Suites by Marriott will be built side-by-side in the 11400 block of Airport Road, on the east side of the road near 112th Street SW.

The hotels will share a front desk.

SMJ Management, which manages hotels in the Everett area and Burlington, will oversee the new lodgings.

Both hotels will offer guests “park-and-fly” privileges and shuttle service to the Everett terminal, Beach said.

“If you spend one night at the hotel, that gives you the ability to leave your car in the parking lot and get the shuttle,” Beach said.

Parking is planned for 200 to 300 vehicles, he said.

“We’re definitely hoping to do a lot of business with the airport,” Beach said.

Preliminary plans call for a restaurant and bar at SpringHill Suites, which offers traditional hotel rooms but no room service.

TownPlace Suites by Marriott is an extended stay hotel, geared for travelers who expect to stay seven days or longer.

“There will be full kitchens and full-size refrigerators,” Beach said. “It will be like a two-room mini-apartment.”

In an effort to court business travelers, the hotel plans plenty of meeting space, Beach said.

Jenni Sandstrom, a professor at Washington State University’s School of Hospitality and Business Management, said the area is heating up now that Alaska Airlines and United Airlines serve the Everett airport.

“In general, the Everett market has gotten a lot stronger with the airport changes,” Sandstrom said.

The property owner, Everett-based Kay Enterprises, purchased the 9-acre site about two years ago.

“Our intention was always to build a hotel, we just didn’t know what brand we’d build,” Beach said. “We’re excited to be working with Marriott.”

Kaye Enterprises met with city officials in May after submitting a pre-planning application, said Allan Giffen, Everett’s planning director.

The meetings are standard for major projects, Giffen said.

“We have not seen any plans yet for land use review,” Giffen said.

That’s not unusual though, he said. Once developers become familiar with city requirements, they’ll often take a few months to revise their plans before submitting a formal land use application.

Beach said that SMJ will submit the plan after completing the wetland mitigation efforts for the property.

Dan Eernissee, Everett’s economic development director, said in a statement: “The Marriott team clearly see Everett’s strong future by locating its new hotel next to Paine Field, in the heart of the aerospace job center and inside the triangle formed by three future light rail stations.”

There are about 400 SpringHill Suites in North America, including locations in Seattle, Renton and Bellingham.

TownPlace Suites by Marriott operates about 400 locations, including Renton, Bellingham and Mukilteo.

Snohomish County currently has about 6,700 hotel rooms.

Janice Podsada; jpodsada@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3097; Twitter: JanicePods.

This story has been modified to more precisely describe the location of the proposed hotels.