Holiday Inn Express Construction Update, 5/2016

The new Holiday Inn Express at 371 Elmira Road seems to be coming along fairly quickly. Framing was completed a few weeks ago, and at this point most of the windows have been fitted. For those concerned that this is going to be a battleship grey eyesore, fear not. The plywood will be covered with varying colors of an Exterior Insulated Finishing System (EIFS, a synthetic stucco) and stone veneer. The grey is most likely a moisture barrier. Drainage cavities are then built over the barrier to allow water that has penetrated the surface to exit the wall without wrecking it (a big problem with early EIFS systems).

When finished, the hotel should look a lot like this one, with some minor design differences and an updated color scheme:

The project is being financed with a $5.98 million loan from S&T Bank, a regional bank in Western Pennsylvania, and Eastern Hospitality Advisors, a Buffalo contractor specializing in hotel construction, is managing the build-out.

The 4-story, 79-room hotel is expected to open late this summer.