A planned $470 million convention hotel has a financing gap of about $178 million that the developer wants Hamilton County and the city of Cincinnati to help fill. But officials say that doesn't mean cutting a check from the county or city general fund.
Hamilton County and city officials asked 3CDC to find a developer for a hotel to replace the Millennium, as part of a planned "convention district" near the Duke Energy Convention Center. Four developers answered a request for proposals and 3CDC chose Atlanta-based Portman Holdings.
Portman CEO Ambrish Baisiwala presented the design and financing plan to county commissioners Tuesday.
"General public support for convention hotels — it's generally around 40%," Baisiwala said. "There are cities that have done around 37%; there are cities that have done around 50%."
The current estimated gap is about 38% of the total cost. County Administrator Jeff Aluotto says they're working to make sure there's no direct subsidy for the project.
"To the degree we're incentivizing the project, we're doing it in a way that we more traditionally incentivizing economic development and not through a direct public subsidy of cash — that's the intent," Aluotto said.
That's typical for the cities and counties Portman has worked with in the past, according to Baisiwala. Some of the options would require a state law change, like using the hotel tax revenue generated on the new site.
RELATED: Hamilton County commissioners are skeptical about paying for a 'convention district'
3CDC CEO Steve Leeper says one option is already available under state law.
"We're looking at like you have done at The Banks, where we've created a new communities authority where local establishments have agreed to possibly increase of 1% on their food and beverage [tax]," Leeper said. "And then we're looking at a few other types of user fees. People that benefit from this would help support the financing of this and not the general taxpayer."
The hotel is slated for a site on 5th Street now owned by The Port, rather than the site of the now-demolished Millennium. The hotel would have a pedestrian bridge over 5th Street connecting directly to the Duke Energy Convention Center.
Portman Holdings will present the design and financing details to Cincinnati City Council in a special meeting of the Budget and Finance Committee Wednesday afternoon.
If all goes to plan, Portman would break ground on the hotel in mid-2024.
Convention hotel design
The designs presented are still only conceptual.
"We really want to put the convention hotel as close to the convention center as possible and make that experience as seamless as possible," Baisiwala said.
One way to do that would be to avoid vehicle drop-off on Fifth Street.
"We've actually extended the sidewalk over there to make that crossover to the convention center easy," he said. "And we've actually put the traffic solution inside the hotel, so to speak. And so that enables for a better drop-off experience."
The new hotel will not include additional parking. 3CDC recently purchased the nearby Whex Garage (with help from the county and city) to serve as primary parking for the hotel and convention center.
Portman Holdings will eventually select who will own and operate the hotel. Baisiwala says there are three primary options — Marriott, Hilton and Hyatt — each with a number of sub-brands.
Overall, the convention hotel is expected to have:
- 800 rooms
- 75,000-square feet of meeting space
- Outdoor event area
- Three-meal restaurant
- Full service amenities including pool, gym/wellness spaces, business center
- Up to 15,000-square feet of leasable ground floor space
See the full presentation below:
