The experience of the high-tech hotel is already generating a lot of buzz in the industry and in cyberspace. It is the first hotel to “open” in virtual reality on the Internet, giving consumers a sneak peak at the product and giving the company instant feedback on its design and concept.

The first aloft hotels won't open until 2008 in Lexington, Mass., Tucson, Ariz., Cherry Creek, Colo., San Francisco and in Mount Laurel. Starwood predicts that by 2012, there will be 500 properties worldwide.

In addition to the hotel, the Mount Laurel redevelopment plan calls for a high-end restaurant and some 15,000 square feet of upscale retail space, said Suzanne Silver, the opening director of sales and marketing of aloft for Delco Development of Mount Laurel, the parent company of Grande Properties.

While conceptual plans have been submitted to the township, the project has not yet secured any of the necessary approvals or permits. Silver, however, said company officials are hoping to break ground on the project by the end of the summer and open the hotel by July 2008.

The Laurel Inn, which closed earlier this year, was one of the township's oldest hotels and was awarded the first liquor license in Mount Laurel. Halbe said that in recent years, the inn wasn't able to draw the business traveller critical to the township's hotel market.

In recent years, the inn had become more of a concern for the township Police Department, which was getting more calls to respond there as the clientele changed.

The Super 8 is still open. Silver said it is likely both buildings on the site will be demolished to make room for the new complex, but plans have not been finalized.

“It's obviously a key intersection and any modernization would likely be deemed favorable,” Mayor Mark Sanchirico said. “The facilities there are aging and refurbishing may no longer be an option...I see no down side.”

The hotel may be the newest offering in Mount Laurel, but the other establishments in the township's hotel row along the Route 73 corridor have already been undergoing changes.

The Wyndham hotel underwent a $2 million renovation a couple of years ago. The Radisson Mount Laurel on Route 73 was renovated and converted into a Marriott last year in a $10 million project. The new hotel recently received approval for an elaborate indoor water park for its guests.

A new Westin hotel is currently under construction on the site of the former Ramada Inn on Fellowship Road. When finished in September, the new hotel will offer 194 rooms to its guests.

And while the region offers all types of hotels at a wide range of prices, the aloft — a new division of the successful W hotels — will be the first niche offering as a trendy, boutique-style hotel.

Silver said that experience will be high-tech and sensory with the hotel developing its own scent to evoke relaxation, and of course, brand recognition.