TUPELO, Miss. (WTVA) - Hotels fill the city of Tupelo and Monday another one opens. Some may wonder if the city's tourism industry can support another hotel, but others said the need is there and they welcome it to Tupelo.
If you're looking for a hotel in Tupelo you don't have to search too far, you have about 20 options. With that number you may wonder why there's a need to add another to the list. Martha Scott, General Manager of the LaQunita Inn and Suites, said it's all about progress.
"Tupelo is still growing, it's growing by leaps and bounds. One thing a lot of people do not realize is that there are so many people that work in Tupelo, but do not live here and the demand in Tupelo is unbelievable," Scott said.
In addition to that reason she said certain events support the need for another hotel in the city.
"Just like our arena there's all kinds of events coming in to it the convention that's coming to town. We've just had the Beta Club, there's another beta coming later on this month. Yes, there's a big demand in Tupelo," Scott said.
She's not alone in her thinking, Linda Johnson, Tupelo's Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director, agrees.
"Business that book hotels, the business traveler, we have a lot of sporting events on the weekends that fill the hotels from Thursday through Sunday. We have the furniture market we have beta clubs. We have conventions we're excited about having new properties in town," Johnson said.
Scott said it's only natural for some to doubt.
"There was a lot of questions about whether or not we could support another hotel and we're here to prove that we can," Scott said.
Scott said the unique thing about the hotel is that the furniture actually helped stimulate the local and the state economy.
"All of our furniture comes from right her in Mississippi," Scott said.
She said she doesn't plan to move those furnishings anytime soon that's why she said she hopes visitors will come to the All America City so its tourism can continue to boom.
Monday marks the official grand opening of the hotel although it has been in operation since November 2009.
