Here is the newspaper article about the Downtown Hotel:
The recruitment of a hotel downtown is a tough task to accomplish and one many cities in the Southeast go to extraordinary lengths to complete.
The stakes could not be higher in Greenville.
Local economic developers have split the city into six color-coded “investment zones,” with the downtown section, a zone extending up Dickinson Avenue through the Town Common to the Tar River, being identified as the top spot for a hotel.
The Daily Reflector learned last week that city management has begun talks to possibly implement a $13 million to $15 million plan to build a multi-purpose civic building on the Town Common at the corner of First and Greene streets, where the old Sycamore Hill Baptist Church once stood.
The news has brought some division to the City Council, which if a new proposal is passed, would have the final say on business transactions.
“That concerns me,” District 4 Councilwoman Marion Blackburn said of a new economic development toolkit the city is assembling.
The industry recruitment package is under revision, as the council this week compared notes with Greenville’s closest competitors: Asheville, Durham and Hickory. It is unknown if and when the plan will be approved.
“The Town Common is the heart of our city,” Blackburn said of her main objection, calling Town Common development an “inappropriate use” of the city’s open space. “It is where we gather for our events. It is where we come together. It is a place that belongs to everyone.”
‘Behind the curve’
Dating back to the early 2000s, the council has made it a goal to bring a hotel to downtown Greenville, visiting major cities in the Southeast for tips on recruitment.
In Greenville, S.C., local officials took the step to build a portion of a hotel on city-owned property downtown.
In Charlottesville, Va., the first hotel took a $20 million investment in which the city eventually sold some of its downtown shares to go in 50-50 on a partnership with an investor.
Local economic developers hope to take a different approach, offering capital investors up to 80 percent of the property taxes their businesses generate.
The incentive — to be made in the form of a five-year cash grant upon project completion — is one of many perks and benefits being considered for the economic development “toolkit” the city is assembling.
While the 16-page package consists of existing incentives, such as a small-business plan competition, it also includes a neighborhood retail grant, special infrastructure fund and tax-increment financing.
At-large council representative Dennis Mitchell said the comprehensive plan fills a much-needed gap in Greenville, offering a “balanced approach” to recruiting new industry and expanding existing business.
“We are far behind the curve,” Mitchell said this week of the importance of economic development incentives. “All major cities are using incentives to attract industry.”
Gaining momentum
In his first City Council meeting last January — moments after he was sworn into office — Mitchell made a motion to start the economic development conversation in Greenville.
Forty days later, the city’s economic development office was created, a council subcommittee was formed and the two groups began to build from scratch — reviewing similar policies across the state and nation — a template of economic incentives to speed up commercial, industrial and real estate construction in the city.
The plan still is in the works, as District 4 Councilman Calvin Mercer, who has had reservations about it, requested staff to seek input from the Chamber of Commerce, Redevelopment Commission, Uptown Greenville and Pitt County Committee of 100 on refining the proposal.
But Mitchell said it is important for Greenville to provide incentives that keep business here and give the city the “biggest bang for its buck.” Under the terms of the proposed plan, the details of all new business deals would be aired in a public hearing before a council vote.
“We all hear about the horror stories of states shelling out millions of dollars to bring in big business and not having anything to show for it because companies eventually move overseas,” Mitchell said.
“I do not think this plan will do that,” the councilman added. “I think it is something that we are going to see positive returns on very quickly.”
Contact Wesley Brown at 252-329-9579 or wbrown@reflector.com. Follow him on Twitter @CityWatchdog.
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