Best Western taking over former Holiday Inn Express

The former Holiday Inn Express is getting a facelift and a new name. The hotel located at 208 W. Fourth St. N. is in the process of becoming a Best Western, with a re-opening date of Oct. 1 planned.

“We are still open, we’re operating under the name Holiday Manor and once it actually opens as Best Western it will be called Best Western Holiday Manor,” Director of Operations for Liberty Hotel Group Kyle Groves said.

Liberty Hotel Group is a management company out of Liberty, Mo. that works under Kishan Hospitality, who is the new owner of the hotel. The hotel went to auction and was purchased about a year ago by Kishan. The company tried to work with Holiday Inn, but Groves said they did not have any interest in staying in Newton. They then contacted Best Western who was interested in the property.

“Best Western is a similar brand and they have other hotels,” Groves said. “We currently have 17 hotels that are open in operation, we have five that are under construction and we constantly add about two more every year.”

The hotel will go through a complete renovation as a part of the complete property improvement plan. New carpet, bedding, drapery and other soft goods will be replaced. The exterior of the building that will be redone. Groves said it will be restored to like new condition and improvements will total about $1 million.

Construction crews from the Kansas City and Wichita areas are currently working in the hotel but upgrades began a few months ago to get the “meat” of the hotel renovated. Amenities at the hotel will stay relatively the same, Groves said.

“We have quite a bit of high quality and successful hotels,” Groves said.

The staff, including General Manager Judy Johnson, is expected to be retained through the construction process and as the hotel opens as a Best Western property. There will be at least one addition to the workforce, Groves said.

“Best Western requires that we have a dedicated sales person, so we will be adding that position a couple months down the road,” he said.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson
at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534
or jpierson@newtondailynews.com