WATSONVILLE—A project seven years in the making, the 112-room Hampton Inn & Suites opened its doors Monday morning on Lee Road in Watsonville.
The four-story hotel flanks a new Starbucks coffee house and a newly opened Arco gas station and AM/PM mini market, all under the umbrella of the Pajaro Dunes Center just off Highway 1 at Beach Road and Riverside Drive.
“It’s really exciting for me, my brother and my father—we worked really hard to get this open, and it happened even during the pandemic,” said Juggy Tut, whose family owns the hotel. “It took a lot of hard work and tough decisions but we are proud of the final result: it’s great to see it come to fruition. This is our first commercial development.”
The inn, at the former site of the Indalux aluminum processing plant, also features an indoor pool, meeting room, breakfast room (with free breakfasts) and a fitness center. Rooms also come with state-of-the-art features, Tut said. One such feature is the ability for guests to use their smartphone as a room key. Guests can also control their TV and thermometer using their smartphone.
Demolition for the project began in 2014 on the expansive lot that flanks agricultural fields to the west and stands across Lee Road from the historic Redman/Hirahara house to the east. Tut said his family is already moving forward on phase two of the project at the site, which includes another hotel, a restaurant and three retail stores at the corner of Beach and Lee roads.
