September 29, 2006

The State Journal

BRIDGEPORT - Microtel Inns & Suites opened its newly constructed 86-room hotel at Charles Pointe Sept. 20.

Located at 201 Conference Center Way in Charles Pointe North, the Microtel hotel features single, double and suite accommodations, all with free local and long distance phone calls within the continental U.S., and free wireless high-speed Internet access. Guests also will enjoy complimentary daily continental breakfast, and use of a fitness center and a 550-square-foot meeting room.

James Corton, managing partner of Genesis Partners, developer of Charles Pointe, said that the Microtel hotel opening complements other progress that the $1.2 billion master planned community has experienced recently.

"The Bridgeport Conference Center is attracting conferences and conventions from around the state and beyond. Convenient, quality and affordable accommodations located adjacent to the facility is an added benefit to business people, as well as families coming back home for visits to north central West Virginia."

"Microtel is proud to be part of the master-planned community philosophy and growth that guides Charles Pointe and to bring a quality and affordable lodging choice to the area," said Mike Muir, senior vice president of franchise development for US Franchise Systems, parent company of the franchisor of the Microtel brand.

"We know that business and leisure travelers alike will appreciate Microtel’s new, comfortable accommodations with top-notch amenities and services that one would not normally find in an economy hotel."

Additional Microtel hotels in the state are located in Beckley, South Charleston and Mineral Wells, and several more properties are in development.

CP Hospitality manages the three-story hotel under the direction of Mike Hager, Charles Pointe’s director of resort & leisure services. Gabe Fiest, a Sistersville native who earned a degree in recreation and parks management from West Virginia University and has held positions as the executive director of the Greater