KEARNEY, NE — If anyone actually wore a crown while at a Crowne Plaza hotel, it would be fitting for it to be Paul Younes.

Or at least it would have been appropriate at Wednesday’s ribbon cutting. Kearney’s Chamber of Commerce President and the city’s mayor heaped praise on the Younes Hospitality President, and the national IHG representative called him the best hotel owner she’s ever worked with.

But you won’t be seeing the modest man with a crown anytime soon.

“I tell everybody I’m just one of the team," Younes said. "One of the team members, that’s it. I’m no better than nobody else.”

With the opening of Crowne Plaza, the humble businessman’s company now operates 15 hotels across the state. The latest was one of the most challenging to develop. It was delayed because of the 2019 floods and then the pandemic.

“We decided to stay focused and to go ahead with the project and things got where we are today," Younes said. "Four years later we are here right now.”

Kearney is now the smallest community to boast a Crowne Plaza hotel.

The new structure is more than just rooms, though. Fyre Modern Grill and Starbucks also celebrated a ribbon cutting on Wednesday. Y Boutique and a water park fill out the rest of the hotel space.

The 70,000 square-foot Younes Conference Center North is attached and offers 29 flexible meeting rooms.

“The kid says ‘go big or go home, Dad.’ We decided to go a little bit larger because… (we) try to accommodate all the groups we have to give them the space that they need,” Younes said.

Younes is quick to credit to his staff and his family. His bother, six nephews, a niece, his son and daughter and their spouses all work in the company.

“The vision of our staff, the dedication the staff gives us, my family, my immediate kids, my brothers and everybody else - my nephews, my nieces - without them, I would not be where I am today,” Younes said.

The Younes campus and surrounding area isn’t done growing. Next up is a voter-approved $34-million youth sports complex.