Hilton Hotel, 12-Story Condo Project Presented to the City Council
December 6th, 2006 | by David Daddio | Published in General College Park, Hilton Hotel, Route 1 | 10 Comments
Tonight the City Council heard from two of College Park’s biggest development players – Mark Vogel and Otis Warren. Vogel presented his preliminary plans for a $60 million, 10-story, 300 room Hilton Hotel between the University’s North Gate and University View. The Hotel would include at least one restaurant looking out on Paint Branch Creek with possibly a second in front of a proposed 500-600 space garage. 30,000 square feet of meeting space would be equaly split among the first two floors, followed by 6 floors of rooms, and two floors for special undecided uses. Vogel said he has spent over 4 years working on the property, including 2-3 years to buy leases from Alario’s Pizza and Jerry’s Sub. He expects to close a deal with Merchant’s Tire soon for their lease.
Citing the tremendous cost he’s incurred so far ($3 million for the ground and $5 million for leases) Vogel insisted that Tax Increment Financing (TIF) was essential to the economic feasibility of the project. The hotel would require a 3-way land swap which would take about 1.5 acres from the adjacent and soon to be constructed North Gate Park. He also stated that UMD has signed an agreement whereby if the hotel was built, the University would not construct a competing facility on East Campus or M-Square. Vogel felt he could break ground in 6 months if he got the go ahead and also that the project is a personal “leap of faith”.
Otis Warren presented a Detailed Site Plan fro 8400 Baltimore Ave – just North of University View. The building would be a 12-story (4 parking, 8 residential) condominium tower with 301 units and 14,000 square feet of retail. The Mayor expressed concerns that the project could become rentable apartment units. He noted that the City was hoping the City Hall Condo project would be 100% owner occupied and at Jefferson Square, another major project nearby, the City is hoping to get at least 80% of the units owner occupied.
We should have pictures up of the Condo project shortly.
December 6th, 2006 at 4:48 pm (#)
I’m sorry, if the city doesn’t want students living:
a) In neighborhoods
or
b) In towers on Route 1
or
c) Elsewhere and clogging up their streets by commuting to UMD
or
d) Elsewhere and commuting to campus on a new Connector Road
Where DO they want students to live? Or perhaps they just wish the university would stop admitting undergraduates?
Owner occupancy requirements are absurd for projects of this type.
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December 7th, 2006 at 2:12 am (#)
I agree with Rob on this one,
I find it absurd that the university is having such a housing crunch, yet all these new deveolopments cannot be used for student housing
Hope the city council has fun in all of the traffic its creating for itself
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December 7th, 2006 at 10:04 am (#)
I imagine the city would be more welcoming to students if the students were perceived to be less likely to vandalize local businesses and set stuff on fire every time the basketball team plays.
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December 7th, 2006 at 8:45 pm (#)
I’m confused. Could someone explain how the city can even enforce an owner occupancy requirement? Or what the city can de facto require to make the building appeal to owners only? Also, what was the city’s stance on the Hilton project at the council meeting? I thought the city was against such a large hotle. Have they (hopefully) changed their view? Thanks
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December 8th, 2006 at 11:46 am (#)
I’m resurfacing from the bowels of the architecture building for this one, hope you guys have been well.. but perhaps the idea of retaining owner occupancy north of the campus will spur redevelopment south of campus for students (i.e. the knox box area)?
Obviously, although probably not possible at this time, it seems to me the best resolution is a mixed town of students and residents.
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December 8th, 2006 at 12:17 pm (#)
Lovely blank wall facing Route 1. You know, I bet a few smart parents up in Long Guyland will rent out rooms in the Hilton for their kids to live in given the current housing situation. College Park may continue being so frosty towards the student population – but they needn’t forget that there wouldn’t be much of a College Park without the college.
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December 11th, 2006 at 1:25 pm (#)
According to a previous post by Robert Catlin, a CP City Council member, he said that, as a solution to the student housing problem, “Land is still available for intensive redevelopment in the Route 1 corridor near the University in the Northgate area that can result in perhaps another 1,500-2,000 student beds. In addition, the redevelopment contemplated for the majority of the Route 1 corridor is ground floor retail, with two or three floors of apartments above. This development could eventually add hundreds of apartments, though these units would likely house all types of renters and not students, exclusively.” ( http://rethinkcollegepark.net/blog/2006/192/ )
This makes me think that this condo building, which would be ON route 1 near North Gate and University View is exactly the type of building that the city would like to use to house students. Maybe the city council member and the mayor disagree?
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December 18th, 2006 at 8:16 pm (#)
[...] We reported the other week that University President Dan Mote sent a letter to the College Park City Council supporting the continued project planning for the I-95 Connector Road. There’s nothing too surprising in the letter considering that the university administration has alway pointed to the project as the “only solution” to CP’s traffic woes. One interesting thing is that while Mote supports the phasing of the Route 1 reconstruction he seems skeptical that even the first segment (College Ave to 193) will be funded anytime soon. “Should a shorter first segment prove desirable,” Mote says in the letter, then the University supports a project from College Ave to just north of Paint Branch Parkway. While there would be some clear pedestrian improvements from such a project, we’d like to point out to administrators that that segment of Route 1 already has a median. It may not be pretty, but this existing median provides just the sort of safety improvements needed all along the roadway and especially in the fast growing area around the University View. “the proposed US 1 project does not provide the critically needed capacity improvements for access to and from the State’s flagship university, improvements that only the I-95 Connector Road can provide.” [...]
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December 19th, 2006 at 12:20 am (#)
Vogel’s condo project is several years old now. It was originally proposed to take up three properties (not just the one property) and it was to have had twice as many units. Many of the residents of the condos would be faculty and staff at the University (it is claimed).
For purposes of getting better retail we need a mix of residents in the corridor. Vogel thinks a high priced high rise condo makes sense for his site. It would also be the first such project in the County’s history (all other existing high rise condos were converted from apartments). The sector plan does not speak as to who would be the occupants of housing in the corridor, but we were always told that student housing would be easy to finance.
Recent happenings concern me and I may have more to add about the issue in January/February as I try learn more about this evolving issue.
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February 13th, 2007 at 3:00 am (#)
Mark Vogel is a developer with insight and vision. He is open minded and the best-informed change agent you will encounter. Please communicate your concerns to him.
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