VIRGINIA BEACH, VA— The Wynnwood Suites here recently installed a new on-premises facility to handle guestroom laundry. At the same time, a self-service laundry center was put in for use by guests at the property, which has 61 two-room suites. “We used to send the laundry out but had some problems getting it back on time. So for reasons of convenience as well as quality, we put in a facility on our ground floor,” said Darshak Patel, owner and gm of the hotel. The 300-square-foot laundry room was carved out of space that had been used for storage. The equipment is from Maytag and includes one 50-pound washer and two 75-pound dryers. “It cost us less than $20,000 to put the new facility in. We already had the water but needed to bring in a gas line for the dryers,” Patel said. “We expect there will be some cost savings by not sending the laundry out, but the main thing was convenience and control,” he added. 300 Pounds Daily One full-time staff member runs the laundry operation between eight and 10 hours a day. He is assisted by a part-time employee and the housekeeping staff when necessary. Patel estimates that 300 pounds of laundry including bed sheets, linens and towels are processed daily at the laundry facility. “There are generally five or six loads of laundry done every day,” he said. Because of the Wynnwood Suites location on the ocean, laundry can be a challenge, Patel said. “There are some abuses with guests taking the towels to the beach, but with the new equipment we can handle that,” he said. The Wynnwood Suites has a swimming pool and sun deck and all of the rooms feature private balconies, cable television with HBO, and daily maid service. The new guest laundry center is located on the hotel’s fourth floor and includes a Maytag washer and dryer. Patel said the center cost “less than $5,000” to install and was put in for guest’s convenience. The hotel attracts many families because of its suite configuration, and Patel anticipates these guests will keep the laundry center busy. The laundry center is available 24 hours a day with access via a guestroom key. Patel also owns the nearby 42-room Wynnwood Inn in Virginia Beach. That property has an on-premises laundry facility which Patel is not planning to change at the present time.
