The Best Western Plus Yosemite Gateway Inn recently broke ground on a project that will add a dozen new rooms to the popular hotel.
Located in Oakhurst, the last “large” town before the southern entrance to Yosemite, the Best Western already has the most rooms of any property there. The addition will expand the property’s room count to 134. The hotel also includes a full service restaurant and bar as well as meeting space that can accommodate up to 100 people classroom style.
“From May to October we run at just under 100 percent occupancy, so this will allow us to serve more people,” said Bill Putnam, general manger of the hotel.
The additional units will increase the hotel’s number of ADA accessible rooms, as several of the new units will meet the latest government standards for accessibility.
“We had the opportunity to expand our ability to serve that segment and we decided to take it,” said Putnam.
In addition to the new lodging units for guests, the addition will create several local jobs.
“Not only will there be numerous construction jobs as we’re using several local contractors, but we’ll need to hire more housekeepers and possibly another person in laundry,” Putnam said.
The new rooms are being constructed just north of the hotel now on a currently vacant lot of land owned by the hotel.
The addition is expected to be up and running before the busy spring and summer season of 2013.
For more information, visit www.YosemiteGatewayInn.com.
