June 2015 - Downtown Hotel & Conference Center Project Update

The Downtown Frederick Hotel & Conference Center Project (Hotel Project) continues to advance as legal agreements are negotiated and financing is secured. Continue to follow DED on Facebook and Twitter for the latest project updates.

A rendering of the Project as viewed from Carroll Creek Linear Park.  Photography courtesy of Plamondon Hospitality Partners, LLC.

The Latest

• Completion of Parking Study - Walker Parking Consulting recently completed a comprehensive parking study for the City of Frederick to analyze the projected impact of planned development in Downtown Frederick, including the demand anticipated from the Hotel Project. Findings from the study will be presented at a Mayor & Board workshop on June 10th. A draft report of the study may be accessed here.
  
  
• Finalization of Memorandum of Understanding - The City of Frederick and Plamondon Hospitality Partners continue to advance a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to define the terms of the public-private-partnership. The MOU is anticipated to be approved later this year.
  
  
• Presentation to City & County Elected Officials - On May 27th, the City and County held the first joint meeting between the City's Board of Aldermen and the County's Council.  The City of Frederick's Economic Development Director, Richard Griffin, briefed both entities on the Downtown Hotel & Conference Center project and received positive support from both City and County legislators. The historic first joint meeting was covered by local media, including NBC affiliate WHAG.

Next Steps

• Approval of Memorandum of Understanding - The final MOU will be presented to the Mayor & Board for approval later this year.  Completion of the signed MOU will enable the developer (Plamondon Hospitality Partners) to finalize project design and begin entitlements and approvals.
  

• Getting the Project "Shovel Ready" - Projects, like this one, go through a process called development entitlements in order for them to be "shovel ready" or ready to construct. The entitlement process refers to the various approvals, permits, and regulatory review needed to move forward. For the Hotel Project, the developer will finalize project design and begin the entitlement process, including necessary approvals from the Planning Commission, Historic Preservation, APFOs, etc. Once started, the process is anticipated to take approximately 12 months.

• State Investment - $15 million in state investment is needed to help cover the public infrastructure costs of the project.  The Frederick legislative delegation unanimously approved a request for $7.5 million in FY16 with the understanding that an additional $7.5 million would be needed in FY17. While this funding request ultimately was not successful, the Downtown Hotel Advisory Team remains committed to making a new request in the FY2017 budget.  Additionally, the City intends to apply for a Smart Growth Impact Fund grant from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development to support site acquisition costs.

About the Project

The Downtown Frederick Hotel & Conference Center project is proposed as a 207 room full-service Marriott hotel.  The project will feature on-site parking and nearly 24,000 square feet of meeting space and will be located in Downtown Frederick, adjacent to Carroll Creek Park.  For additional project details, please access the Department of Economic Development's Document Center.

A rendering of the Project as viewed from E. Patrick and N. Carroll Streets.  The Frederick Railroad Company (Trolley) Building will be rehabilitated and incorporated into the overall Project design.  Photography courtesy of Plamondon Hospitality Partners, LLC.