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About The nugget. (Sisters, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (May 22, 2019)
Wednesday, May 22, 2019 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon 17 Sisters set New Sisters hotel offers ‘GrandStay’ to Stampede into summer By Jim Cornelius Editor in Chief For the 10th year, Sisters will mark the start of the sum- mer outdoor recreation season with a stampede. The Sisters Stampede, that is. The annual mountain bike race is set for Sunday, May 26, running on the Peterson Ridge trail system in Sisters. The race draws everyone from kids and novice riders to elite mountain bike racers. The trails were built by the Sisters Trails Alliance. The race course features views of the Three Sisters Mountains, and rolling singletrack scat- tered with Central Oregon lava rock. This course is mainly singletrack, which will test riders9 strength and stamina. A start/finish is located in the meadow east of the FivePine campus and Three Creeks Brewing Co., which will host the after-race party. The Sisters Stampede is seeking a few more volun- teers to support pre-, post- and ride-day activities. Volunteers can register at sistersstam- pede.com/volunteer. The first thing you notice when you walk into the lobby of the new GrandStay Hotel & Suites on Rail Way at the west end of Sisters is the rich wood and iron of the bannisters and a towering rock fireplace. It feels like Sisters. And that9s exactly what longtime Sisters contractor and developer Steve Rodgers was trying to achieve. <I want it to be Sisters, but I didn9t want to go over- the-top 8cowboy,9= he said. <I think we nailed it.= The fact that Rodgers could decide just how he wanted the entrance to the 39-room hotel to look speaks to the nature of the GrandStay Hotels franchise. <We9re a brand that part- ners with our franchisees,= said John Synstegaard, vice president of operations with the Minnesota-based hotelier. <We like to have our owners put their personalities into it 4 and their area.= That means art by local art- ists featured in public spaces and building materials that speak to pine trees and moun- tain streams. The Bend com- pany Northland Furniture built PHOTO BY JIM CORNELIUS Steve Rodgers, Robin Rodgers, Kris Rodgers and Savanna McBride joined GrandStay Hotels’ John Synstegaard in marking the opening of the new GrandStay Hotel in Sisters. the case goods 4 dressers and the like 4 for the hotel. Rodgers was determined to put that Central Oregon stamp on his hotel, which is built across Rail Way from his Mainline Station develop- ment. It wasn9t easy to find the right partner. <I talked to four franchises, and they all just put us in this box,= he said. GrandStay gave him lee- way to be creative 4 while providing systems and logis- tics that allow people who are new to the industry to hit the ground running. <I couldn9t have picked a better franchise for us,= Rodgers said. <They have been so much help.= The GrandStay Hotel & Suites in Sisters is No. 32 in the chain, which is located mainly in the Midwest, but it9s expanding its footprint across the nation. The hotel features 39 rooms, including four deluxe suites (one of them ADA accessible). There is an indoor pool and hot tub; two whirlpool rooms; a 17-seat meeting room, and a breakfast room where hot breakfast is offered each morning. The hotel currently employs 14 people. Steve and Robin Rodgers9 son Kris Rodgers is managing the property. <I9m excited about it,= Kris told The Nugget. GrandStay Hotel & Suites is open for bookings now, (www.grandstayhospitality. com/find-a-hotel/locations/ sisters/overview). They plan to host a grand opening with an open house for the Sisters community in June. NO W O PEN ! Make Your Stay Grand In Sisters! • Spacious, family-friendly suites with full kitchens • Nightly, weekly, and extended-stay rates • Indoor pool and whirlpool — 1026 W. Rail Way, Sisters — • Complimentary Grand Start ® Breakfast • FREE wireless Internet throughout Book Now For Summer Events! Several rooms available for Sisters Rodeo, Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, and Sisters Folk Festival. Please call the front desk direct at 541-904-0967 to book. • Meeting room and business center • Grand Returns Reward Program • Walking distance to dining, galleries & shopping RESERVATIONS: 541-904-0967 | 855-455-7829 www.grandstayhospitality.com EVERY GUEST ~ EVERY TIME ™