An artist’s representation of the ALT Hotel on Slater Street.
The planned construction of a 148-room, “no-frills” hotel in downtown Ottawa represents a “very positive initiative” for Centretown businesses, says the head of the Bank Street Promenade merchants’ association.
Groupe Germain Hospitalité said the new ALT Hotel will occupy 12 storeys within the proposed 22-storey, mixed-used complex planned for a property along Slater Street between Bank and O’Connor.
Ottawa’s ALT Hotel will follow the company’s signature brand of “no-frills chic,” incorporating a few features with the best quality possible — including high-end beds — while leaving out others that would drive room prices up, said development director Hugo Germain said.
“Instead of trying to provide all the services that someone can imagine . . . we focus on quality and make sure those things we do are the perfect,” Germain said. Dick Brown, executive director of the Ottawa Gatineau Hotel Association, said tourism in Ottawa is a strong industry, and that ALT Hotels made a decision clearly related to the market demand.
Having forgone the usual high- and low-season prices, Germain said the hotel chain has found an under-served market niche, allowing its hotels to stand out because a night there will always cost the same amount, no matter what time of the year.
Although Germain said pricing for the Ottawa hotel has not been decided yet, he said he doesn’t see it straying from the pricing of $139 to $149 a night in other markets. The hotel is expected to open in late 2014.