Estevan – Continuing its build-out of hotels throughout southeast Saskatchewan, Western Star has added what is arguably its crown jewel to their chain.
The new Estevan property, known as the Western Star Signature Hotel and Conference Centre, is located on Kensington Avenue. It is a step up from their other properties. For one, everything seems bigger. The lobby is much larger, the breakfast area is substantially larger than their other locations, the rooms are bigger and even the halls seem a little wider.
The new hotel opened in late June, and a grand opening is planned for later this summer.
The 120-suite hotel has a full kitchen in every suite. That includes a convection microwave, cooktop, full-size fridge, sink, dishwasher, and all the dishes, pots and cutlery needed.
Western Star began in 2012 with its first location in Carlyle. This was followed by Redvers, Esterhazy, Stoughton, Carnduff and Melita, Manitoba. The new Hampton Inn & Suites on the east side of Regina is also part of the group. The chain’s footprint now covers almost the entire southeast Saskatchewan/southwest Manitoba oilpatch.
With successive properties they found that rooms equipped with kitchens were always the first to be occupied, thus Carnduff and Melita, and now Estevan, were built with that in mind.
The Estevan location also adds numerous rooms in its basement. These include a boardroom, three meeting rooms varying in size. The meeting space totals 9,000 square feet. They have a portable riser and removable dance floor for parties and weddings. Each room is separate, and there are no dividers, so you shouldn’t hear the speaker in the room next door.
The large gym is also substantially larger than what has been offered in their previous hotels. It is in the basement, allowing for 24-hour operation without bothering other guests trying to sleep.
The Estevan location has a unique feature, a media room that will be filled with theatre seating and multiple large screen TVs. It will provide an area for guests to gather and hang out, away from their rooms, but still in the building.
The breakfast area features a hot and cold breakfast, included with a night’s stay. There’s seating for about 75 people in the breakfast area. Breakfast bags-to-go are also offered.
There are four types of suites. The double queen is the most common, at 88. Then there’s the king suite, of which there are 22 The largest rooms are the 12 executive king. These rooms are very large, with kitchens larger than you would find in some houses. They have large soaker tubs and rainfall showers.
The last type of room are wheelchair accessible rooms, of which there are eight. There are two elevators provided.
The entire parking lot is also paved. There is room on the property for a future restaurant, should the market warrant.
Ronny Khetarpal is the general manager, having transferred over from the Hampton Inn in Regina.
“We’re quite customer-focused and customer-centric,” he said, noting feedback from previous hotels was used in the design of this one. Some examples are the inclusion of full kitchens for each suite and full-sized, modern appliances. The entire parking lot is paved, and there is room for semi-trucks and buses. They can accommodate full frac crews, and their trucks.
As for the clientele, he expects two-to-three night stays to be the average expected stay, but that will depend on projects and bids on work happening in the area. “We absolutely expect long stays as well,” he said.
Pat Laskey, director of sales and marketing, said, “The difference is all of our product is A+, but this is AAA+.
Laskey noted the need for more convention space in Estevan, saying, “We know a lot of oilfield companies have Christmas parties. There’s conferences, weddings, showers and awards.”
She added there’s also space for private, confidential meetings.
While the hotel itself will not cater to these events, they have made arrangements with several caterers who will be able to provide service.
At least 15 to 20 people will be employed, and they have been successful in finding local workers. There have been a lot of resumes this time around.
