Berlin authority hires consultant for hotel project
Melan Group asked to study market demand
Berlin officials see the Beat Western being built in Rumford, Maine, as a model for a hotel in their city.
Officials in Berlin, not giving up on efforts to attract a small hotel to the city, have hired the management firm currently overseeing development of a Best Western Hotel in Rumford, Maine, to be their consultant.
The Berlin Industrial Development and Park Authority has hired Rob McCarthy of Bedford, founder of consisting and hotel management firm Melan Hotel Group, to evaluate the city’s potential to support a 60-bed hotel.
Melan put together the financing plan for the hotel in Rumford whose ownership group includes 29 local investors. Once the hotel is open, the New Hampshire-based Melan will manage the day-to-day operations.
McCarthy was hired after a market demand study conducted by a Boston firm found no significant demand to support a hotel in Berlin.
McCarthy, who visited Berlin last week, told officials he disagreed with some parts of the Boston firm’s study and said he felt there was more opportunity here for a hotel than indicated.
BIDPA members are pursuing a hotel because they see a market emerging among the growing number of ATV and other outdoor motorized recreation enthusiasts traveling to the area.
