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Hotel Project Bouncing Back

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By ANGELA DELGADO, The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 24, 2007

TOWN 'N COUNTRY - A fire on June 29 burned a portion of the Best Western Inn & Suites under construction, but that didn't knock down owner Mike Patel; the hotel will be ready by December.

The 65-room hotel had furniture in every room and new carpeting when a four-alarm fire swept the building three weeks before it was scheduled to open.

'You name it; everything was done,' Patel said.

Hillsborough County Fire Rescue crews responded to the fire that engulfed the fourth floor and attic of the 41,000-square-foot hotel 200 feet west of Dale Mabry Highway and south of Waters Avenue. Hillsborough Fire Rescue spokesman Ray Yeakley said the cause was undetermined.

'Although inspectors had a lot of evidence that pointed to the possibility of smoking, it wasn't a clear-cut case,' Yeakley said.

Patel said crews immediately began gutting the building and started reconstruction in August. Several measures have been taken to prevent another incident like this from happening again, Patel said.

'We worked together to get over this devastating fire that disturbed us in a very bad way,' he said. 'It's just an unfortunate thing that happened, and thank God that there were no injuries or casualties. With the grace of God we just were saved that way.'

Reporter Angela Delgado can be reached at (813) 865-1501 or adelgado@tampatrib.com.

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