New downtown hotel proposed, approaches second hearing

Anyone who has had trouble booking a hotel in Bloomington could soon find a solution to the problem.

The Bloomington Plan Commission partially approved a proposal for a new Hyatt Place Hotel developed by REI Investments Real Estate Services on West Kirkwood Avenue at a Sept. 10 hearing, City of Bloomington Planning Director Tom Micuda said.

Micuda said he is looking forward to the next planning commission meeting coming up next Monday.

Jeremy Stephenson, vice president of development for REI, said the new hotel would be seven stories high with 168 rooms and a 150-car parking garage. It would have a meeting space, an internal fitness center, a pool and a small restaurant.
 
Both Stephenson and Larry Jacobs, manager of government relations for the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce, said they do not think the hotel’s restaurant would threaten local restaurants.

He said downtown Bloomington is set up perfectly with food establishments, and he said he anticipates hotel guests would explore local eateries during their stay.

Before the proposal can be passed, there are two more public hearings to review the site plan followed by further hearings in November.

The city council has to vacate Right-of-Way, the alley of land owned by the city that runs through the middle of the property, prior to construction.

The hotel would be built on the south side of Kirkwood Avenue, just east of the B-Line Trail.

Stephenson said he believes the project will meet Bloomington’s need for additional hotel space from a tourism standpoint and as a destination for meetings and conventions.

“Bloomington is well situated to capitalize on some of the natural amenities it has,” he said.

He said the hotel will create 40 to 50 jobs within the hotel, plus a number of construction jobs.

IU School of Journalism adjunct lecturer Scott Burgins, a member of the plan commission, said he thinks the hotel would be a good use of the space.

Though Burgins said he was slightly surprised at the timing of the hotel proposal, he said he guesses those in charge of the market have run the numbers and determined the city’s need.

“It’s not a particularly big hotel, so I guess they are going to build to a number they think can keep a maximum occupancy,” he said.

As for its effects on IU, Burgins doubts there would be a direct impact.

Still, “what’s good for downtown is good for the university,” he said.

Nikolaus Kern, the Indiana Memorial Union’s Biddle Hotel Manager, said he thinks the new Hyatt hotel would boost tourism in Bloomington. He said he is not worried about the competition.

“I’m pretty confident that we’ll be able to maintain our current occupancy,” he said.

Executive director of Visit Bloomington Mike McAfee said there would be millions of dollars of impact on the area, and he said he has faith in Bloomington’s ability to thrive thanks to the University.
 
“IU is the most recession-proof institution in Indiana,” he said. “Bloomington is more resilient than a lot of areas because of the University.”

As a result of this growth, Bloomington is tight for hotel rooms, and there is a need for more space.

The Hyatt is not the only hotel being reviewed. In February, the planning commission reviewed a pitch for a slightly smaller hotel, a Springhill Suites by Marriott with 155 rooms and a built-in parking garage. The commission passed the proposal, but it still needs to go through the city council.

Jacobs said he does not foresee a problem with either plan, as he has not witnessed any opposition to them thus far.
 
“Believe me, we’d hear if people didn’t like it,” he said.

Micuda also said there has been no major opposition to the Hyatt project. However, he acknowledged that some plan commission members had concerns about the architectural variety of the building’s structure and the look of the building from Fourth Street at the Sept. 10 meeting, and members said they would prefer to have some retail store space.

These issues have not yet been resolved and will be discussed at the Monday
meeting.

Regardless, barring another major recession, Jacobs said both projects stand a 95 percent chance of starting next year.

“We see this as a good resource and a good fit for downtown Bloomington,” he said. “I think the timing is perfect.”