A Kennewick-based hotel company’s newest Pasco hotel sold out its first two floors within days of opening, and it is already building what comes next.

The Home2 Suites by Hilton in Pasco, a $25 million extended-stay property made up entirely of suites, opened June 1 and immediately found an audience. The hotel is designed for longer-stay guests, a segment that has proven strong in the Tri-Cities market.

Taran Patel

The quick fill-up comes as A-1 Hospitality Group moves forward on its most ambitious local project yet. The AC Hotel by Marriott, under construction at the Three Rivers Convention Center, 7016 W. Grandridge Blvd. in Kennewick, has accumulated more than $38 million in building permits and is part of a $75.2 million convention center expansion. 

Taran Patel, managing principal of A-1 Hospitality, said the hotel is on track to open in late spring 2027. 

Patel, who oversees the company’s operations and development, has earned recognition both locally and nationally, including being named a Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business Young Professional in 2025, Hotel Management’s 30 Under 30, Oregon Lodging Operator of the Year in 2023 and AAHOA Outstanding Young Professional Hotelier of the Year in 2022. His father, Vijay Patel, was a Tri-City Person of Influence in 2026.

Tri-Cities trends

Overall, the Tri-Cities market has held steady, despite the ups and downs of other markets, Patel said. 

When the Covid-19 pandemic hit, about 750 hotel rooms left the market supply as hotels closed up and converted to multifamily due to a reduced demand. 

Although Tri-Citians may notice a number of new hotels under construction, Patel said the market still hasn’t hit the high-water mark of 2019. People forget just how many were shut down or converted during the pandemic, he said. 

With the new hotels opening, the Tri-Cities will be at a good position. It’s key not to be undersupplied, which can be cost-prohibitive to visitors, or oversupplied, Patel said. 

Over the years, guests in Tri-Cities hotels have diversified, Patel said. The industry used to be heavily dependent on Hanford-related travelers, while now people are in town for industrial, food processing, and even data center growth. 

Three A-1 Hospitality hotels are located in Pasco, near the Tri-Cities Airport. It’s a major hub for travel in the region, bringing an influx of travelers to town for events like graduation or even for specialty medical treatment. 

Kennewick-based A-1 Hospitality Group recently launched its latest hotel, Home2 Suites by Hilton in Pasco, on June 1.

| Photo by Rachel Visick

Home2 Suites

A-1’s most recent project, Home2 Suites by Hilton in Pasco, opened June 1 at 2203 W. Argent Road, Pasco, and all of its 107 rooms are suites, each with a kitchenette that includes a full fridge, dishwasher and microwave. 

Some are a little larger than others and have a bedroom separate from a living room, a style that more closely resembles an apartment than a hotel. 

Patel said the hotel is ideal for those staying one or two weeks, or even a month, at a time. 

The suite style gives guests more room to spread out and cook meals so they don’t have to leave the hotel each day. At the same time, the hotel offers several amenities, including complimentary breakfast, a swimming pool, a patio, two conference rooms, a board room, a fitness center, and paid guest laundry. 

The hotel is also in the process of getting a liquor license for an on-demand beer and wine tap near the front desk. 

Hospitality

A-1’s key for drawing in and keeping guests lies in its hospitality, which starts with its own team. The company focuses on providing a great culture and promotes its leaders from within. 

The team treats guests like family and builds a rapport with repeat clientele that brings them back again and again, Patel said. 

The company has 755 employees total, with 24 at the new Home2 Suites in Pasco. Patel said A-1 hasn’t had any difficulties attracting employees; when a hotel is under construction, it attracts a lot of interest from people who pass by and ask about it. 

A-1 also brings leaders from its other hotels who may be ready for a promotion to help run its newest hotel. 

The company’s leadership knows that when they develop and invest in their team, the team will take care of the guests.

That theme of taking care of the guests has already emerged in A-1’s Pasco Home2 Suites. Opening week saw the hotel still working to get its elevator up and running to service the four-story building. Only the first two floors were open to guests so that they wouldn’t need to climb so many stairs. 

For those who wanted a room on the hotel’s fourth floor anyway, hotel staff offered to bring their bags up the stairs for them, said Michael Sherman, a front office worker.

Though Sherman only joined A-1 a little over a month before Home2 Suites opened, he’s already found it to be a good experience.

“A-1 management is a family, and it’s felt that way,” he said.