Grim reopening again delayed
Property manager says move-in date pushed past June
TEXARKANA, Texas — With the finish line tantalizingly close, the Hotel Grim’s owners have again pushed back when the renovated building will open to residents.
The project will not be completed by June, the latest estimated movein date, because “major contractors” have not finished their work, property manager Samantha Jones said Monday. Remaining tasks include heating, ventilation and air conditioning work.
“Things are at the borderline there, but it’s just all of the little things that have to go through and still yet be done,” Jones said.
About 40 people are waiting for an apartment in the Lofts at the Grim, as the building has been renamed.
“We keep ramping them up and waving the golden ticket in front of their face, but we haven’t produced the actuality of it yet. So I think people are a little bit tired of that at this point,” Jones said. “I just wish we had better news.”
Lofts at the Grim will comprise 93 total apartment units with varying studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom floor plans.
Conversion of the derelict hotel into an apartment building began in November 2019, and the initial estimate for a completion date was spring 2021.
The rehabilitation project is funded by a multilayered, $26 million financing package that includes housing and historic tax credits, Environmental Protection Agency funds, a Neighborhood Stabilization Program loan, conventional debt and local contributions from the city.
All apartment units in the Grim will be affordable-rate housing, because the project is partially funded by the federal Low-income Housing Tax Credit program. That means tenants can have a household income of no more than 60% of the local median.