Business Leaders Back Norfolk's Hotel Plan
By Matthew Jones and Harry Minium
The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.
NORFOLK, VA, November 24, 2005. Several business and community leaders said Wednesday they are happy with the city's decision to spend $61 million to partner with a private developer to build a hotel, condominiums, conference center and parking garage downtown. "Almost anything to revitalize downtown, I'm for it," said M.A. "Bob" Rawls, president of the Poplar Halls Civic League.
The $104 million development will include a 20- to 25-story luxury hotel -- most likely a Hilton -- on the corner of Main and Granby streets. The city will contribute $61 million for the conference center, garage and land, using revenues from its parking system and from an existing tax on hotels and restaurants. The developers -- RLJ Development of Bethesda, Md., and Norfolk's Fulco Development -- will spend at least $43 million to build the hotel and 50 to 60 condominiums on the building's top floors. They'll build the conference center and parking deck and run the former for the city. RLJ is headed by Robert L. Johnson, the billionaire founder of Black Entertainment Television and owner of the Charlotte Bobcats professional basketball team. Fulco Development is headed by former professional football player William Fuller. The hotel's restaurant will receive a performance grant -- a rebate of a portion of taxes it generates -- from the city that could be worth $750,000 over 10 years.
The owners of the Norfolk Airport Hilton have no objections. Virginia Beach-based Harmony Investments recently purchased the Military Highway hotel for nearly $17.9 million and is spending more than $4 million on renovations.Page Johnson, Harmony's senior vice president, said he doesn't think the convention center will help his hotels very much because downtown is a different market. While his group has received no city subsidy and didn't expect any, Johnson doesn't object to the city spending the $61 million. "It's similar to what Virginia Beach did with the Hilton" at the Oceanfront, he said. "Any time you do a new development, that's what you've got to do to get the developer to invest his money."
Councilman W. Randy Wright received details of the project Tuesday with the rest of City Council, and said he is satisfied with the terms. "I don't see any reason not to vote for it," he said. "The council has supported this all along. I would be surprised if it's not a unanimous vote."
Park Place Civic League President Nelson White was equally optimistic. "I'm glad to see some minorities do some work downtown. I'm all for it," he said. "I know the city's not going to forget about the neighborhoods."
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Copyright (c) 2005, The Virginian-Pilot, Norfolk, Va.
Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.
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