Privatized lodging tops 5 years at Fort Sill

FORT SILL, Okla. (Aug. 22, 2014) -- Soldiers training here living in the extended-stay hotel who experience unexplainable extraordinary coursework results can always say: "But I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express hotel last night."

Fort Sill has the largest Holiday Inn Express in the world. Its twin high-rise towers Aultman and Allin halls have 544 rooms between them. Guests can also stay at six low-rises, Geronimo Lodge and Comanche House.

Fort Sill and InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) Army Lodging celebrated the five-year anniversary of privatized Army lodging (PAL) with a celebration Aug. 13 at Allin Hall. Lodging guests were invited for birthday cake during the Wednesday night social in the dining facility.

Fort Sill was one of the 10 original installations in Group A that became privatized in 2009, said Gabriele Whitaker, Fort Sill IHG Army Lodging general manager. Group B added another 11 forts in 2011. When another 18 posts were added in 2013-2015 the total rose to 39 lodging facilities in the continental U.S., Alaska, Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

The majority of guests at IHG are official travelers meaning Soldiers on temporary duty assignments, service members and their families undergoing permanent change of station, foreign military personnel and government civilians traveling on orders, according to a PAL information sheet. Unofficial travelers are also welcome and include military retirees, guests of military families assigned to the installation, contractors and visiting business people.

Immediately after privatization, lodgers saw im-provements in guest services, furnishings and food service, said Whitaker, who was manager of Army guest housing here before it became privatized.

"We received all new mattresses, new flat-screen televisions and began a guest social on Wednesday nights," she said.

What used to be prepackaged continental breakfast turned into a full-blown complementary breakfast for guests seven days a week.

Although Army lodging here became privatized Aug. 15, 2009, it wasn't branded as Holiday Inn Express at Fort Sill until Jan. 27, 2011, after extensive renovations, Whitaker said.

Col. Glenn Waters, Fort Sill Garrison commander, said he has seen improvements at the lodging in the one year that he's been here.

"Ms. Gabby and her team have raised the quality of life of the facilities and brought in a professional standard for the Soldiers and families who use the facility," Waters said. "She's upgraded the kitchen, and the low-rises to accommodate families with pets."

One thing that remained virtually unchanged in the transition was the staffing with about 80 percent of the guest house lodging staff becoming IHG employees here, Whitaker said.

Russ Ritson, Fort Sill IHG Army Lodging operations manager, said he believes the staff's understanding of the military lodger has made the IHG and Army partnership so successfull.

"The people involved in the Army all come from an extended-stay hotel background, so they are very understanding of extended-stay guests," Ritson said. "At the end of the day, our real mission with the Army is to do whatever it takes to make the most of the little free time that Soldiers have. That's my focus."

To do this lodging amenities include laundry facilities; kitchen conveniences; a fitness area; pet friendly rooms; business centers with computers, printers and Internet service and fax capabilities at the front desk; an Olympic-size swimming pool; and shuttle service to the PX, commissary and Lawton-Fort Sill Regional Airport.