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Huntsville BUSINESS JOURNAL
COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
Vision Hospitality Group Cuts Ribbon on New Hampton Inn & Suites in Downtown Huntsville Downtown Huntsville celebrated a sparkling new addition to its growing roster of hospitality options on Wednesday with a ribbon cutting ceremony at the new Hampton Inn & Suites Hotel Huntsville Downtown, located at 313 Clinton Ave. W. on the corner of Clinton and Monroe. Directly across the street from Mars Music Hall and Rhythm on Monroe, the new hotel marks the entry of Vision Hospitality Group (VHG) into the Huntsville market. It is operated by Humanist Hospitality, a wholly owned subsidiary of VHG. Vision Hospitality Group officially began in 1997, founded by President and CEO Mitch Patel in Chattanooga. Humanist Hospitality, which operates the hotel, is an award-winning operator of leading hotel and restaurant brands with an emphasis on fostering meaningful human interactions. When asked what sets his hotels apart from the competition, Patel responded “First and foremost, what sets us apart is we believe that what we do–we’re in the people business. First and foremost. We’re not in the real estate business….it’s about people, it’s a beautiful hotel but it’s about people…you don’t go just for the room or the public spaces. It’s a service.” “I think if you look around, this is not your ordinary Hampton Inn…
Mitch Patel cuts the ribbon at the grand opening of the new Hampton Inn & Suites in downtown Huntsville
we like to elevate that experience that guests experience, and through design, through art, and those kinds of things. It’s storytelling, and we want to make you want to be a part of the fabric of this great community of Huntsville,” he continued. Patel’s eye for detail is obvious with the artistic touches found throughout the hotel’s decor, which features subtle aerospace-themed artworks not only on the walls, but also on the bar shelves. The new hotel is tastefully decorated and well-designed inside and out, situated in a prime corner location that greets visitors as they first arrive in Downtown Huntsville. Patel stated that with Huntsville located just an hour and a half away from the company’s hometown
in Chattanooga, “we’ve always had an eye on this great community, as [it has an] obviously great educated population, great household income. It’s growing rapidly, the downtown particularly.” He noted the proximity of the Von Braun Center and its new music venue right across the street, as well as the large developments taking place nearby: “huge amount of residential growth, which I think is important. When you have people living in an area, they’re going to frequent the restaurants and other businesses, and guess what? That’s what our guests want too. Our guests want to stay here and be able to experience what local people in Huntsville are experiencing,” Patel said. Although the Hampton Inn &
By Dawn Suiter / Photos by Steve Babin
Suites Huntsville Downtown does not feature a restaurant, it does have a bar. “There are plenty of restaurants. We don’t want to compete with the 25 or 30 restaurants that are in this [immediate] area. They do a great job. Many are chef driven-type restaurants…there’s so many food and beverage outlets,” Patel explained, adding that the bar is perfect because of its location right across from the VBC, which allows concertgoers the opportunity to enjoy a drink within walking distance of the venue before or after events. As the large group of attendees awaited the ribbon cutting ceremony, Patel addressed the audience, thanking his company’s partners and supporters. Among those he recognized was Harry Gross of Truist Bank for providing financing for the hotel project. “Thank you for believing in us and the partnership and the support. It means a lot,” Patel said. He also thanked Hilton Hotels: “We have a longstanding partnership with Hilton; we have developed and operated many hotels with Hilton over the years. We love this brand, there’s 2500 Hampton Inns globally, and I’ve gotta say, this Hampton Inn here is #1 in the world in cleanliness, and in the top 1% of the brand in almost every other category, which is friendliness and guest satisfaction and so forth. So they are doing an incredible job. And I say this often–this is a beautiful hotel, no question. But
