The Kings Inn motel on Routes 1/9 south will eventually be renovated to become a Super 8 but the addition has been yanked from the drawing board.
The distinctive tower may not be demolished though it will remain, in a different form. (The tower would be to the left of the building if the sketch below extended in that direction.)
When developers presented their plans for renovations and a 43-room addition to 
the Redevelopment Agency last month, it was before a survey of the property was done. The survey revealed the four-story addition would be within a flood zone and thus require elevation of some six feet, according to Department of Environmental Protection regulations.
The additional building would have increased the total number of rooms to 87. Instead, the current facility will be renovated with one room converted into office space, leaving 52 rooms. A representative of Wyndham hotels indicated 50 rooms is the “basic, absolute minimum” for its hotels. Developers, who came before the Redevelopment Agency again last week, proposed leaving the tower as a breakfast area, which didn’t sit well with some commissioners.
Redevelopment Agency Chairman William Rack was adamant with developers that the tower not remain. “It’s a symbol of what’s there now, I don’t want it to permeate,” he said. “The reputation is there (.pdf), you’ve got to get rid of that.”
Developers, who said they’ve renovated 10 to 15 franchise hotels in New Jersey, agreed to reshape the tower and make it one story high in converting it into a breakfast area.
So … the developers for the new Super 8 Motel are clinging to the idea of keeping that goofy Kings Inn tower? Strange – I always thought that these corporate hotels like to try to maintain a consistent brand image, and the OPP Tipi wouldn’t seem to fit.I think it’s an ugly kitsch monstrosity and would be happy to see it go.
I’m curious if people think Rahway needs a super 8. With the new hotel coming up next to the train station and other hotels in the proximity, it just doesn’t seem like there is a need for more hotels. I’d rather see that are used as additional park space than the current plans.
I hope when all the highway construction is done they at least landscape it like they did down the road in Avenel/Woodbridge.This might disquise all our towns discount motel/hotels!!!!
Who cannot wait for Hot Rods and Harley’s this weekend? Weather looks good. I am pumped. Last year was a lot of fun.
As to the need for a Super 8/more motel rooms, the representative from Wyndham made the point that these aren’t new rooms building excess into the local hotel/motel market.The attorney representing the developer, Chris Armstrong, who appears before the Planning and Zoning Boards pretty regularly, seemed to think the tower could be an asset if modified the right way.The developer was amenable to making any changes and seemed to just want to avoid losing another room to create a breakfast area.