Without debate, $58 million plan to redevelop downtown Wyndham moves to next stage

The full Springfield City Council will consider an $18.75 million incentive package to redevelop the downtown Wyndham City Centre.

The city council's committee of the whole on Tuesday moved the ordinance without discussion to the debate agenda for the March 21 meeting.

The move came after the Community Economic Development Commission earlier in the day endorsed the ordinance.

The hotel makeover is pegged at $58 million.

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Under the proposal, Tower Capital Group out of San Antonio, Texas, would keep 250 hotel rooms while converting 200 rooms into apartments. The hotel would operate under the Delta by Marriott flag.

Last year, the city council rejected overtures for a variance that would have dramatically reduced the number of hotel rooms. There are currently 378 hotel rooms and 26 apartments in the Wyndham, the city's tallest structure that dates from 1973.

The hotel's mechanicals, HVAC, elevators, windows and public areas would be upgraded. The top floor would feature a sky deck as a tourist attraction.

Ryan McCrady, president and chief executive of the Springfield Sangamon Growth Alliance, and Scott Larsen, president of operations for Sky Capital Group, had been prepared to make a presentation to the committee of the whole, but instead, that will wait until next week.

Two alderwomen, Kristin DiCenso of Ward 6 and Erin Conley of Ward 8, were absent from the Tuesday meeting.

At the EDC meeting, McCrady said it would be "difficult or impossible" for Tower Capital Group, which is a subsidiary of Sky Capital Group, to finance the 450-room hotel project, but "by allowing the developer to blend in multiple sources of revenue by having the apartment revenue plus the hotel revenue, it helps them achieve (that financing)."

The $18.75 million in incentives would come partly from a targeted, sole project tax-increment financing district, or TIF, with a full 23-year life, McCrady said.

The city, he added, will have the flexibility to blend in sharing the hotel/motel tax and sales tax both generated at the property to help complete the incentive requirement.

McCrady said he could not provide an estimate of how much would come from the TIF, which is only property tax.

The Wyndham is in the city's downtown TIF, but because of its decreased assessed evaluation, the hotel isn't contributing any increment to that TIF, McCrady said. The hotel is valued at $2.75 million, he said.

Larsen said the apartments would be of different sizes, though most would be studio apartments and marketed to medical personnel, renting for $800 to $850 monthly.

Scott Dahl of the Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau said he was satisfied with the number of hotel rooms proposed to help meet the obligation of some larger conventions coming to the city.

The renovated hotel, Dahl added, would help SCVB lock in additional conventions.

The Delta by Marriott line also will drive business to Springfield, Larsen said.

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"This seems to be a proposal a little more palatable for the group," said EDC member Joe Aiello. "It looks like it's going to be a nice package for the downtown, to allow downtown to continue to have the hotel rooms it needs for conventions. That's a big part of it."

Leslie Sgro, another EDC member, said the development would be "a shot in the arm (that is) going to bring people and energy and investment to downtown.

"We need that vibrancy. It's a change of mindset."

Al Rajabi, Sky Capital Group chief executive, had wanted to sell the hotel to New York developer David Mitchell last year, but the city council turned down three votes on a variance that would have increased the number of apartments, a prerequisite for Mitchell.

A variance is not needed for 200 or fewer apartments.

The fate of the hotel has fueled controversy, including the forgiveness of a $243,000 charge on its City Water, Light & Power bill.

Mayor Jim Langfelder said again Tuesday that amount was due to meter and demand charges. The hotel paid the rest of the $1.5 million bill in full and the other charges were waived because the hotel agreed to stay open during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Langfelder contended the city and CWLP have emergency communication towers on top of the Wyndham it otherwise would have to pay rent for.

Asked about the timing of the project, three weeks before the election, Langfelder said the timing was driven by the development group.

"They didn't want to wait," Langfelder said. "They wanted to get an answer from the city council. We hoped having this presentation will hopefully convince the aldermen. The timing's not great, but, again, I wish we had a couple of months to think about this."

Langfelder is running for a third term against City Treasurer Misty Buscher. Buscher attended the EDC meeting.

Firehouse renderings

Springfield Fire Chief Brandon Blough said it was "great" to think about getting shovels for the city's three planned firehouses.

The committee of the whole got a look at renderings from Archimages, a St. Louis-based firm charged with the designs.

"We're planning on starting to roll in weeks," Blough said in reference to construction.

Station 6 would move from 2156 S. Ninth St. to 11th and Ash streets, the former Honeywell-Hobbs property. Station 8 at 2051 W. Monroe St. would relocate to Lawrence Avenue, just west of Veterans Parkway, near a Dollar General store. Station 13 just off Apple Orchard Road would be a new build.

Station 12 is the city's newest firehouse and it was built in 1996, said Blough.

Ordinance back to debate agenda

An ordinance codifying water, sewer and electric bill settlements will go back to the debate agenda Tuesday after it was pulled out committee.

The impetus of the ordinance was a bill had been owed to City Water, Light & Power by the Wyndham owners. The bill in question never came up for a public vote.

The ordinance proposes that any amount owed over $50,000 would have to come before the city council.

Buscher advocated for that amount to be $10,000. Her proposed ordinance would also require a report be given to council monthly for any debt waived under $10,000.

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, sspearie@sj-r.com, twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: The Springfield IL City Council will take up the Wyndham redevelopment