Buoyed by brisk business over the past four years, the Flathead Valley’s lodging industry is expecting another banner season as Memorial Day jump-starts the summer season.

Several local hotels are in the process of completing renovations that will give the valley a wider variety of lodging options this summer season. And a couple of new hotel projects are in the works.

“There is a good variety,” said Diane Medler, director of the Kalispell Convention and Visitors Bureau. “What Kalispell certainly has to offer is that we have a large, affordable range of hotels.

“We have national brands and then also the independent-run hotels. It all appeals to different people,” she said. “Some people, when they travel, look for that brand they’re familiar with, where you know what to expect and what not to expect. Some people look for more amenities. They all offer different things to different people ... We offer it all.”  

The Hampton Inn in Kalispell recently completed an extensive removel of both its lobby and guest rooms, Medler pointed out.

“Remodels certainly help drive sales,” Medler said. “An updated hotel with updated amenities, nice gathering spaces and guest rooms that have updated linens, carpeting, TVs, refrigerators ... that’s what hotel guests look for, especially at particular price points. It certainly enhances their experiences.”

And when those beds are full, the local restaurants, bars, retailers and gas stations see an influx of visitors as well.

State bed-tax collections in Kalispell were up 9 percent in 2013, following a 16 percent increase in 2012. Over the past four years, bed-tax collections have increased 50 percent.

Montana collects a total a 7 percent lodging tax, with 3 percent going to the state’s general fund and 4 percent used for tourism promotion.

Larry Lambert of Lambert Hotels in Missoula recently received approval from the city of Whitefish to build a 76-room Hampton Inn & Suites off U.S. 93 South behind the defunct Wendy’s restaurant.

Lambert said the tourism market in the valley has been very positive over the past three to four years and he’s seen a lot of growth. He chose Whitefish for a new hotel to  widen the lodging options in the resort town.

“Whitefish itself hasn’t had a new hotel in about 20 years,” Lambert said. “There are a lot of people that want to stay in Whitefish, but the hotel type they’re specifically looking for isn’t there, so a lot of those people are staying in Kalispell.

“And there are lots of things to see and do in Kalispell, but there’s also a lot of things to do in Whitefish and a lot of people would like to stay there as well.”

Lambert expects construction to begin July 1 on the hotel, which is part of the Hilton Hotels chain. The Hampton will feature a small conference space that will fit 40 to 50 people, so he’s looking to host meetings and small conferences as well. He expects the Whitefish Hampton Inn & Suites to open in May 2015.

Swank Enterprises of Kalispell will be the general contractor for the project, but using a local contractor is not necessarily a usual practice for Lambert.

“We wanted to get a very good contractor that can get it done in a timely fashion and that was Dewey [Swank],” Lambert said. “We’re anxious to be working with them.”

Lambert is excited to hire locally as well. He will hire 15 to 20 employees, including a head housekeeper, maintenance supervisor and front-desk staff. He already has a general manager and assistant general manager in place. The general manager has ties to the valley as well.

“The general manager is currently working for one of our other properties, and lived in the Kalispell area prior to working for us, so he’s anxious to be coming back,” Lambert said. “He’s very familiar with the area and very anxious to get back to the Flathead Valley.”

Construction of the new hotel will benefit the Whitefish community in another way — the Whitefish Fire Department has planned a training session in the old Wendy’s building before it gets torn down, likely in mid-June.

“One thing about [Lambert Hotels] and all of our properties is that we really like to be involved with the community,” Lambert said.

GuestHouse Inn, Suites and Outlaw Convention Center (formerly the Outlaw Hotel), also has found success in using local resources over the course of its renovations.

Rocky Mountain Hospitality’s Steve and Cinthia Rice purchased the former Outlaw Hotel a year ago. Since then, they’ve kept busy with renovations — and kept local businesses busy as well.

“We started renovations last summer,” Steve Rice said. “We did some exterior things, and as soon as summer got over we started the inside. We have a general contractor from out of town that will come up with one or two people, and the rest of the crew he hires locally. That worked well for us in this market. And I’d say that 90-plus percent of the materials we used were purchased from the Home Depot in Kalispell. They really did a great job for us.

“This is the largest motel we’ve got in our group of 10 and we’ve never done a remodel all at once like this before,” Rice said. “I think it’s fair to say we’ve never purchased from a single source as much as we’ve purchased from the Home Depot in this project.”

Rice said the GuestHouse Inn renovations are not fully complete, but they’re in the final phase of remodeling the guest rooms. Out of 150 rooms to remodel, they have 17 left to finish.

Another important aspect of renovating the old Outlaw was rebranding it to the GuestHouse Inn and Suites.

“This property was the Hilton of 20 years ago,” Rice said. “But it’s not any more. By rebranding, that’s our way of telling people, ‘Hey, something has changed.’ We know that the local market has a relationship with the Outlaw. I think the community was saddened by the way this property was heading and is glad to see it being turned around.”

The GuestHouse Inn will keep the Outlaw name on the Outlaw Convention Center and Outlaw Extended Stay, but Rice thought it was important to rebrand to give the property new life. He also believes he can be more successful as a franchise than as an independent.

The outlook for the old Outlaw looks good, Rice said, noting he’s added a direct sales team and thinks that will increase sales over the next two years by 50 percent. That can be accomplished by providing a better product to customers, he said.

The GuestHouse, which sits on almost 200,000 square feet, also will feature meeting space and is in conversation with potential tenants for the restaurant on the property.

Plans for a boutique hotel in Whitefish seem to be solidifying.

Sean and Brian Averill, owners of The Lodge at Whitefish Lake, have asked the city of Whitefish for $513,633 in tax-increment funds to build a downtown boutique hotel on Block 46. The City Council approved a preliminary commitment of tax increment money last week.

“Summer has always been very full,” Medler said. “So the more capacity we have, then summer can even be increased.

“But during the offseason, some of the properties target a different audience,” she noted. “Some target business travel or longer-stay travel and a boutique hotel has a different target. It’s a different niche that people look for.”

Medler hopes a strong summer season will created momentum for a stronger off-season. From October 2013 to March 2014, there was a 17 percent increase in room nights in Kalispell.

“The more guest rooms that we have available, the more we can fill. And the more hotel rooms we fill, the more our local restaurants, gas stations and retailers see business,” Medler said.

Reporter Brittany Brevik may be reached at 758-4459 or by email at bbrevik@dailyinterlake.com.