North Shoppes hotel expected to open by August
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) -- Construction on a Hilton-affiliated hotel continues throughout the spring after work appeared to go stagnant over the winter.
Home2 Suites by Hilton is accepting reservations beginning August 18 at 3701 N. Village Dr., according to its website.
It will be the latest addition to a string of hotels emerging in St. Joseph. My Place Hotel celebrated its grand opening a month ago down the street from the Home2 Suites.
Christian Mengel, director of marketing and communications with the St. Joseph Convention and Visitor's Bureau, said the additional hotel space helps when events such as the NCAA men's golf regionals come to town and they need 100 rooms for the players.
"That's over 10% of our total occupancy, where if the same event was happening in Springfield, it's just a little over 1%," he said.
Higher occupancy rates typically result in higher hotel prices because of supply and demand. When St. Joseph hosts large events, it can cause rates to increase due to a lack of hotel rooms.
"When you have a Missouri Western graduation, for example, now all of a sudden you're talking about 200-plus dollars a room night," Mengel said. "And families just don't want to pay for that."
Local hotels will prepare for another major event on the horizon in 2026. Kansas City will host World Cup matches next June and July.
"We're well within the boundary of hotels being affected," Mengel said. "I mean, they're saying 200 plus miles will have some impact, like there will be somebody staying in those communities in that surrounding area for the World Cup."
Two additional hotels and a conference center are under development on Frederick Avenue, but it's unclear if they will be open by next summer.
A total of $237,480,031 tourism dollars were spent in Buchanan County in 2024, according to the Missouri Department of Revenue.
"We obviously want them all here by the World Cup," Mengel said. "That'd be great. But the fact that they're even coming in at all, we'll be able to work with it."
