Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Work begins on independent hotel in downtown Bentonville
BENTONVILLE — Site work has started on an independent hotel downtown that will include an event space, restaurant, bar, cafe, two retail spaces and 142 rooms — and a little something extra for bicyclers.
Cycling-specific amenities will include a bike valet, secure storage and a bike wash, according to a news release issued last May by 4media group when the hotel was announced.
The foundation will be poured over the next several months, weather permitting, according to a spokesman for Blue Crane, a development and real estate company that will manage the 116,000-square-foot project.
Blue Crane will partner with Ropeswing Hospitality on food and beverage operations for the hotel project, according to the 2022 release. Blue Crane and Ropeswing Hospitality are affiliated with Runway Group, a holding company headquartered in Bentonville backed by Steuart and Tom Walton.
The hotel site is at the intersection of Southeast A Street and East Central Avenue, south of the Benton County Courthouse on the former Tucker’s Corner site.
The land at 200 E. Central Ave. is owned by Tucker’s Corner LLC and was purchased for $2.55 million in October 2018, according to the Benton County Assessor’s Office. A total cost associated with the project has not been established, according to Blue Crane.
Planning documents do not include a proposed construction timeline. The hotel is tentatively set to open during the fall of 2024, according to Blue Crane.
The hotel will be named with a nod to Bentonville history. The public announcement of the name is forthcoming, according to Blue Crane.
The hotel’s design expresses three principles that are essential components of the “Bentonville experience”: reverence for nature, commitment to community values and support for balanced lifestyles, Blue Crane architect Ben Craig said in the May release.
“Both exterior and interior spaces of the hotel tie project to place by the extensive use of local building materials and native plant species, applying down-to-earth sensibilities, and by filling those spaces with cultural events that reflect the project’s setting at the gateway to the Ozarks,” Craig said.
The hotel will be west of Dave Peel Park along the planned A Street Promenade, which will connect the yetto-be-built Bentonville Commons, a planned plaza/activity space, at the south end to Lawrence Plaza, three blocks north. The estimated promenade cost is $13 million, said David Wright, city Parks and Recreation director.
Work on the first part of the promenade near Lawrence Plaza should start this summer, Wright said. The A Street Promenade is about access from places like the new hotel, 21C Museum Hotel and the Benton County Courthouse, he said.
“Being able to get out of the front door and get right on the promenade,” he said.
Parking will be provided by a new parking structure half a block east of the hotel, developed through an agreement with the Off- Street Parking Development District.
The parking structure at 300 E. Central Ave. shows a 46-foot-tall, mixed-use parking garage. The development will include 1,585 square feet of retail space and a 167,806- square- foot parking garage with 456 parking spaces, according to planning documents.
Downtown has become increasingly attractive to hotel developers.
Hilton Hotels in 2021 announced plans for The Motto Bentonville Downtown hotel on South Main Street. It will feature 175 rooms, an indoor bike garage, coffee bar, restaurant and an outdoor bar patio, according to a news release.
Motto by Hilton is an urban, lifestyle hotel brand in prime locations globally, according to its website. The Bentonville location is expected to open in 2024.
Mike Jones can be reached by email at mjones@nwaonline.com.