While a newly opened hotel in Leland sees a running start of success, another hotel project faces its fifth denial from the town.
Two years have passed since the announcement of a Hampton Inn & Suites coming to one of Leland's busiest shopping centers. As the project stays under review, the recently constructed extended-stay Marriott hotel is thriving as the town's fourth hotel.
StudioRes by Marriott Leland opened in April as Marriott's seventh "new concept" location, Hotel Assistant General Manager Amy Green said during the Leland Tourism Development Authority meeting on Sept. 8.
The hotel is designed for guests staying more than two weeks at a time, like traveling nurses, construction workers and even employees training for the new Amazon facility
in Wilmington, Green explained. There are minimal amenities, such as no pool, and studio-sized rooms come equipped with a microwave, full sized fridge and two-burner cooktop. Guests can only choose from queen-sized beds as well, Green said.
Hotel staff are still working out opening kinks, but Green said the hotel's occupancy is growing week-by-week.
"[We are] very excited that we've seen great success at StudioRes with many people coming in, not only for the extended stay experience, but we are seeing a tremendous amount of leisure guests coming to Leland," Green said.
As for the anticipated Hampton Inn & Suites, the property remains undeveloped as of Sept. 9, 2026.
Prior plans denied for Leland's fifth hotel
In June 2024, Wilmington-based property management company Crown Hotel & Travel Management announced in a news release that it entered into a purchase and sale agreement to acquire property adjacent to the Tru by Hilton on Olde Waterford Way.
A Hampton Inn and Suites by Hilton was initially expected to open in 2026 with 100 rooms, an indoor pool and a meeting space on the two-acre property.
Sitework plans submitted in late January 2025 proposed a 97-room hotel next to a Tru by Hilton hotel off Old Waterford Way. The 2025 plans included 98 parking spaces, three different access points using two existing driveways on Old Waterford Way and a shared access connection to Harris Teeter.
Following three rounds of review by the technical review committee in 2025, a new development site plan for the hotel was submitted to the town in March 2026. The March plans showed a total of 101 rooms and 103 parking spaces, slightly larger than the plans proposed in 2025. Electric vehicle charging stations are also outlined in the new plans.
Next review could be the last
The town has denied plans for the hotel four times, Leland Planning Supervisor Ben Watts said. Now, the hotel is in its fifth round of technical review committee review.
This round, plans show 100 rooms, electric vehicle charging stations and 103 parking spaces. A pool area is also outlined in the proposed plans.
"The plan set will receive preliminary technical review committee approval once all relevant codes/ordinances have been met," Watts said. "The reason that plans are denied at the technical review committee level is that they do not meet one or more relevant codes/ordinances."
The project is considered a by-right development and only requires approval from the technical review committee to apply for building permits, Watts explained. The project does not require town council nor planning board approval.
"If there are no outstanding comments from technical review committee members after this current round of revision, the plans will receive preliminary technical review committee approval," Watts said.
Hotel representative addresses delay
Crown Hotel and Travel Management Executive Coordinator Lauren Crossman previously told the StarNews that the company has several properties under development throughout North Carolina requiring immediate attention. This has caused delays for the Hampton Inn in Leland and other projects in the company's development line, Crossman said.
Though Crossman previously said the anticipated groundbreaking will be first quarter of 2027, she said in early September a "better" update on the project will likely be available in summer 2027. She did not respond when asked if the groundbreaking timeline has been pushed.
"We are still under development for several other hotels in North Carolina that are requiring more of our time," Crossman said. "We have several openings in late spring."
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Savanna Tenenoff covers Brunswick County for the StarNews. Reach her at stenenoff@usatodayco.com.
This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: New Leland hotel thrives as another stalls
