Matteson Holiday Inn gets $12 million makeover
By Mike Nolan mnolan@southtownstar.com September 13, 2012 6:22PM
Matteson Mayor Andre Ashmore (center, with scissors) cuts the ribbon on the renovated Holiday Inn in that village on Sept. 12, 2012. | Mike Nolan~Sun-Times Media
Updated: October 15, 2012 9:42AM
A fixture in Matteson for more than a quarter of a century, the Holiday Inn at the southeast corner of the interchange of U.S. 30 and Interstate 57 has undergone a multimillion-dollar renovation that touched virtually every inch of the property.
“Only the (interior) walls” were left intact, hotel owner Narain Gulabani said Wednesday before a formal grand opening ceremony.
All 202 guest rooms were rehabbed, and the hotel now features a Bar Louie nightclub.
A few years ago Holiday Inn pulled its flag from the property because it wasn’t up to the chain’s standards, then the hotel operated under another name for a time. Matteson officials earlier last year feared the hotel would close for good.
Matteson Mayor Andre Ashmore said the reopening of the hotel was the “culmination of a lot of hard work.”
Jim Garrett, president and chief executive of the Chicago Southland Convention and Visitors Bureau, likened the renovation of the hotel to the legendary Phoenix rising from the ashes, saying the property has “become a beautiful shining light” in the region.
Gulabani said he bought the hotel in April 2011, and the rehab began this past January. The hotel was closed while renovations were under way, and it reopened a few weeks ago. The project cost $12 million.
He said he also owns hotels in Bolingbrook, Mount Prospect and Indiana.
Garrett said his organization brings in meeting planners who scope out sites in the Southland for events, and the Holiday Inn will be added to that itinerary.
Percy Scott, executive director of the Matteson Business Association, said it was a positive sign to see the hotel renovated and reopening, noting the Holiday Inn “has been a staple in the village for years.”
