Construction is expected to begin next year.
Frederick, Md (KM) It looks like there will be some movement on the proposed downtown Frederick hotel and conference center. A briefing on the project was presented on Wednesday to the Board of Aldermen.
The facility will be located along South Carroll Street and contain 208 rooms, and 21,210 square feet of conference center space, including ballrooms, pre-function and breakout space. There will also be a parking space which will be open to everyone, not just hotel guests.
Pete Plamondon, the Co-CEO of Plamondon Hospitality Partners which plans to build the facility, said the project is moving along. “We started pre-development costs. We’re in for site plan approval come this August. So we started the process with our engineers and architects to do that. This summer, we’re starting to socialize where the private equity will come from,” he said.
Construction is expected to begin in 2025.
The project is expected to cost $101.56 million. . Background materials at the meeting say that Plamondon will by paying $73.54 million dollars toward the project, which is 72.41%. Public financing will be $28.02 million dollars or 27.59%. The City of Frederick will be committing $2 million and Frederick County is providing $2.52 million. The State of Maryland is expected to provide $23.50 million or 23.14 %.
The Board of Aldermen are expected to vote on Thursday, July 18th whether to accept a $1-million grant from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development which will be used for the project.
During the meeting, State Senator Karen Lewis Young said constituents have asked why public money is going toward this project. She said public funds will be used for projects that provide a public benefit. “If the total public investment is $28-million, if you look at the aspects of the projects that have a public benefit, that’s $35.24 million, and that doesn’t even include the brownfield mitigation,”: she said.
But Alderwoman Donna Kuzemchak noted that if the city is receiving state funding for this project, will this prevent funding for other projects. “I need to know that it doesn’t stop all other projects because I feel there are a couple big projects that are happening now that certainly were not my major things to do,” she said.
Richard Griffin, the Director of Economic Development for the City of Frederick, said this project will have an economic impact to the city. “$1.5 billion over 25 years is estimated. Over $60 million dollars annually in direct and indirect and induced spending that’s going to occur around this facility,” he said
He also said the city and the county will collect tax revenue from this project.. “They’re going pay local city tax and county tax. and those are going to be be significant revenues coming in,” he said.
And Alderman Ben MacShane said the city needs more than just residential development. “A lot of folks are saying ‘we need more than just housing. We need investment in commercial. We need economic development. We don’t want to be just a bedroom community. We don’t want to build new development suburbs, and just become a new suburb of wherever to our south.'”
By Kevin McManus