$39M hotel planned for Valparaiso
Valparaiso City Council member passed two resolutions by a vote of 5 to 1 at the April 10 meeting approving next steps for a $39.5 million project for a boutique luxury hotel for downtown Valparaiso.
Council member Robert Cotton, D-2nd District, voted against both resolutions, citing he believed the plans were “still premature,” and preferred more information concerning financial, tax and bond impact, before providing his support. Council member Casey Schmidt, R-3rd District, was absent from Monday’s meeting.
Approval for the redevelopment plan resolutions, both brought to the body by the Valparaiso Plan Commission and Valparaiso Director of Development George Douglas, followed a detailed presentation by Jennifer Brooks, director of residential property and development for Urschel Development Corp.
The new hotel at 354 W. Jefferson St. will incorporate the ornate Romanesque style turn-of-thecentury building that was originally the Gardner School until 1972, when it was then repurposed as the Valparaiso Boys and Girls Club, with a gym later attached.
A “land swap agreement” in 2021 with Urschel Development Corporation allowed the school property to be acquired and a new facility for the Valparaiso Boys and Girls Club to be constructed at 708 Evans Ave., which opened in May 2022.
Named Grand Gardner Hotel, it will span not only the existing historic school building with additional wings which extend over the land but also included three residential properties as part of the acquisition. Brooks told the council groundbreaking was expected by summer and the construction project completed by late 2024.
“The resolution which brings us here tonight is to create a new allo
cation area, not part of any other TIF district,” Douglas said.
“Remember, historically, the properties previously housed did not pay taxes, since the space was used by the Boys and Girls Club, and before that, the school. The new allocated TIF revenue created from the project will stay in this area.”
Brooks, who is serving as the project manager for the Grand Gardner Hotel, said the $39.5 budget encompasses not only the land acquisition, but also the removal of the gym structure and the three residential properties and restoration to the historic architecture school building, the construction of the new hotel wings as well as the property’s furnishings and operational supplies and fixtures.
The Grand Gardner Hotel design will utilize the original school structure to house the lobby, kitchen, six guest suites and a speak-easy bar and lounge. The new east wing will include 52 guest rooms and the mechanical and housekeeping areas. The new west wing will provide a banquet and dining area, a breakfast area, spa, fitness center, board room and meeting space and offices.
Brooks said she anticipates the hotel project will result in 24 full-time hotel employee jobs and 68 construction jobs.
“With a historic structure such as this comes great character and many stories, but also many problems when renovating an older building,” Brooks said.
“There was also some hazardous material abatement connected with the work on this building.”
Council member Diana Reed, D-1st District, posed a question of concern about parking in the area where the hotel will operate and the impact on traffic flow for the surrounding neighborhood.
Douglas said a parking demand study is planned and forthcoming to “look for comprehensive overview and impact.”