Fort Worth: Omni Fort Worth Hotel (Conv. Ctr.) (447 FT. / 33 ST.)

[CTroyMathis]

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Websites:
http://www.omnihotels.com/FindAHotel/FortWorth.aspx
http://www.1301throckmorton.com

Netcam:
http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showthread.php?t=6964
http://www.austinprojects.com/Omni/webcam.html

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City Council delays vote on hotel

BY JULIE BLACKLIDGE
Fort Worth Business Press

The Fort Worth City Council said it would appoint a citizens committee to address concerns about a city-owned hotel instead of confirming Feb. 1 as the election date for a public vote as expected.

The council is responding to Mayor Kenneth Barr's request for at least a six-month postponement of the election. Barr said the committee is necessary in order to address concerns of the 16,000-plus citizens who signed a petition that forced a public vote of the sale of $160 million in certificates of obligation to fund the project.

Steve Hollern, the organizer of the petition drive, criticized the council's actions.

"They did this because they knew they would lose," he said. "By saying they will delay this six months, it is a deliberate political move to get past the May elections. They don't want to lose council members because of this issue."

However, at the council meeting Tuesday morning, Barr said, "Today, I commend the (16,000 plus) citizens who signed the petitions seeking voter approval of the proposed hotel project," he said. "And, I encourage them to be involved in not only voting in future referendum elections but in helping make such elections a win-win for Fort Worth's future."

The Citizen's Committee on Fort Worth's Future will be composed of appointed residents from each council member's district, a committee chair appointed by Barr, and Gary Jackson, the city manager, who will be a non-voting member.

[freewaytincan]

It'd be nice to see. I hope Dallas does the same. I've been sketching my personal ideas for it for years.

[gc]

I hope FW can get this hotel for several reasons. I think it would help the convention business, therefore improving visibility. Also, if FW gets one, then it is more likely Dallas to move forward with one as well.....which is desperately needed!

[freewaytincan]

Why are people not for it? How stupid!

[John T Roberts]

Most of the citizens are for the hotel. What they are against is the Council approving to spend $160 million of our tax money without asking for permission. That is what the petitioners want to vote on -- spending the money to construct the hotel.

[gc]

Star-Telegram Staff Writer - By Anna M. Tinsley

FORT WORTH - The city should build a luxury convention center hotel using income from the hotel to pay off the cost of construction, a City Council-appointed committee decided Monday night.

A majority of the Citizens' Committee on Fort Worth's Future approved recommending to the council that the city build a 600-room hotel on city property and pay for it using revenue bonds.

"We need a hotel to take us to the next level," committee chairman Tim Carter said. "This [committee] process that we've gone through is good for Fort Worth."

The decision comes after five months of discussion and debate, nine meetings and two public hearings. The recommendation is scheduled to be presented to the City Council on June 10. The council is not bound by the committee's findings.

Twenty members attended the meeting at the Fort Worth Convention Center. Twelve favored building a 600-room hotel, and 15 voted to recommend that the city pay for it with revenue bonds.

But members were split 10-10 on whether to recommend that the council call an election on the proposal before proceeding.

"These are just recommendations," said former Mayor Bob Bolen, a committee member. "We'll have to see how it goes with the City Council.

"But if it moves forward, you have to sell it to the voters whether there's an election or not."

Not everyone on the committee was convinced of the need to move forward.

Member Steve Hollern, who could not attend Monday's meeting, has said he is drafting a minority report showing that a new luxury hotel would be desirable but is not a necessity.

The majority's report does cite "a valid concern by the existing hotels and some committee members about adding rooms to the market because of the current economic downtown."

Last year, the council proposed financing a hotel by issuing $160 million in certificates of obligation, a form of debt that would put taxpayer dollars behind the deal.

The plan generated fierce opposition, and a petition drive signed by about 16,000 residents stopped the council from acting. Then-Mayor Kenneth Barr appointed the committee to review the idea.

The committee agreed that financing the hotel with revenue bonds would reduce risk to the city. The process requires the city to create a local development corporation to issue the bonds and handle operations. Those bonds would be paid off with hotel profits and through the city's hotel-motel tax.

"We're certainly not trying to tell the council how they can function," said Kim Dignum, a committee member and financial planner. "But we're taking into consideration the opinion of 16,000 people who signed the petition."

If the City Council proceeds, it will take about six months to handle financing and negotiate a development agreement and another two years to build the hotel, City Manager Gary Jackson said.

If the council puts the issue before voters, and they approve it, the process would take more than three years, Jackson said.

[gc]

FW committee recommends convention center hotel
06/11/2003 - By MELISSA TAMPLIN / WFAA-TV

The future of Fort Worth's convention business is back in the hands of City Council members.

Tuesday, a citizen committee suggested the council go forward with building a convention center hotel. Now, council members must decide how to pay for it.

After six months of study, members of the Citizens' Review Committee said a convention center hotel should be built downtown. The finding is nothing new, according to council members who support the idea.

"This committee spent several hours, as had the council, before we made our decision on this, and they've really - from what I understand - (ratified) the decision we've already made," council member Wendy Davis said.

But the question remains: how should the construction of the new hotel be financed?

"I have said from day one that I don't support government being involved in private business, and I don't want our tax dollars in any form or fashion involved in private business," council member Chuck Silcox said.

Many private business owners believe the hotel should be built by the city. In fact, one downtown hotel owner spelled out the phrase "if you build it - they will come" on the hotel's sign.

"We're all for it," hotel owner Tracey Cravens said. "We get notices all the time that convention meeting planners want to come here, and then they choose not to come to Fort Worth - and their reason behind it is that there's not enough downtown housing. We just believe that the more we can offer, the more people will come."

The citizens' committee is proposing the council pay for the project with revenue bonds. But, 16,000 voters signed a petition saying they want to be included in the process, and many council members agree citizens should be involved.

"If you go forward in such a way that you finance this project, even if it is through revenue bonds, I think that our public expects to be able to vote on that - and I respect that greatly," Davis said.

The council's Economic Development Committee will now review the issue, and within the next 30 days they will come back to council members with a proposal of what should be done next.

[chiboi]

This would be a great move for FTW. There are not any 4 star properties in downtown FTW and therefore, this limits the type of conventions that can be attracted. Aside from that, the capacity in FTW is low. Now, let's get going on a Convention Center hotel for Big D!!!

[John T Roberts]

I think this is good for Fort Worth. It is also interesting to note that the hotel could be built on one of three blocks that the city owns, plus another where the Tarrant County College Downtown Campus is located. The original proposal called for the hotel to be built where the TCC is now, placing the hotel on Lancaster Avenue, but furthest away from the center. This also would have three vacant blocks between the hotel and the nearest downtown building other than the Convention Center. The committee has recommended building the hotel on one of the three city blocks with the preferred location on the northernmost block. This would put the hotel directly across the street from the Southwestern Bell Telephone Building and real close to the middle of the Convention Center building itself.

[CTroyMathis]

Hammons Hotels has the dollars, Omni the rooms
At least 6 bidders expected for project

BY SHANNON CANARD
Fort Worth Business Press

Two prominent developers recently have met with city of Fort Worth staff and officials, proposing private development of a convention center hotel.

John Q. Hammons, a hotel developer based in Springfield, Mo., and Omni Hotels of Irving, have pitched proposals and offered to build in downtown Fort Worth, assistant city manager Joe Paniagua has confirmed.

The offers by Hammons and Omni Hotels, in addition to four developers who had submitted proposals in 2001, prompted city staff to recommend that the city council request formal proposals from developers. The council has approved the measure and will be accepting proposals through August.

Paniagua would not guess how the proposals would be financially structured, but said the city would be interested in those that would minimize its financial risk.

Kirk Slaughter, director of public events for the city, said, “At this point, no one really knows what the deal looks like. I suspect there won’t be a lot of change, because the market hasn’t changed.”

Slaughter said the interest of Hammons and Omni might suggest “there may be equity partners already lined up or that have a huge reserve of assets or cash they can call upon.”

One recommendation a four-month, blue-ribbon hotel committee forwarded, and the city is standing firm on and has included in the request for proposals, is the need for at least 400 rooms. The committee recommended a 600-room hotel. The 400 number came from the minority report, which opposed the hotel, but said if you're going to do it, start with 400 and expand to 600 if there is market demand.

“We’re aiming for national convention and meeting business. In order to attract those, you have to have a certain product. If you build a hotel that is too small, you’re not going to induce the demand into the marketplace,” Slaughter said.

Hammons’ project, which he pitched to city staff and officials, including Mayor Mike Moncrief, hotel committee chairman Tim Carter, city manager Gary Jackson and Paniagua, is for a 350-room Embassy Suites, obviously below specifications. The $58-to-$60-million hotel proposal calls for building on lots owned by the city between 11th and 14th streets, across from the convention center. Hammons also said that because its hotel would be all-suites, there would really be 700 beds, though there are questions as to whether business and large convention travelers would want to share rooms. He also said he could start construction this year and be open in a year.

Hammons has been building hotels for more than 50 years and told city officials that 350 rooms is the right number for Fort Worth’s market, especially in light of the 1,600-room Opryland Convention Center and Hotel under construction in Grapevine.

Steve Hollern, a Fort Worth CPA who served as chairman of the Citizens for Taxpayers’ Rights committee that organized a successful petition drive that challenged and stalled the issuance of certificates of obligation to fund a hotel project in December, was a member of the blue-ribbon committee and author of its minority report. He had told The Business Press of the dramatic impact Opryland would have on the Fort Worth market.

“Anyone who doesn’t think Opryland will draw significant convention business away from both Dallas and Fort Worth simply isn’t living in the real world,” he had said. “And, of great importance to convention and meeting planners, will be the facility’s ability to block as many as 1,400 rooms for a convention, with up to 3,900 rooms available nearby in Grapevine proper.”

According to a local real estate broker who works closely with Hammons, the 329-room Embassy Suites connected to the Bass Pro Shops in Grapevine is expected to take a $3 million-a-year revenue hit after the opening of Opryland. In a June 9 letter sent to Moncrief and Jackson, the Hammons group said Opryland would “tear the entire market up” the next three to four years and we “can support these statements with history, facts and figures.”

In his offer to Fort Worth, Hammons requested the city provide the real estate for the hotel as well as the funds to build an adjoining 800-car parking garage, a potential cost of $8-to-$10 million. The city would get revenue from the parking garage.

Additionally, he would like to see building variances for more building space, a 10-year tax abatement and the city construct an overhead walkway between the hotel and the convention center.

A 320-room, Hammons Embassy Suites and 650-car parking garage is being built this year in Frisco, with completion set for 2004 as part of the sports complex being developed by Tom Hicks and a convention center by the city. Frisco will own the center and garage, but Hammons will operate them.

Despite Hammons’ offer to fund and operate a Fort Worth hotel, and add on rooms if demand merits it, Slaughter said conventioneers would like to see a larger hotel with a different name.

“Convention market demands and recognizes for meetings and conventions such names as Marriott, Hilton, Sheraton and Hyatt Regency,” Slaughter said. “Embassy Suites is a fine product. It is, in fact, owned by Hilton. But I think Fort Worth has to look at what the market is telling us, what the customer is telling us.”

The Omni offer came more recently, over the last month, said a source close to the deal and confirmed by Paniagua.

Omni is said to have offered a 500-600 room deal at a cost of $120-to-$140 million, but will require half of the cost to be shouldered by the city. The biggest obstacle, according to those familiar with city officials, would be the greater financial investment – and risk -- to the city.

One source who has worked closely with the independent hotel committee said the city probably would go no more than a 30 percent subsidy.

Of the potential proposals being bandied around the city, Hammons’ is favorable, according to this source. “It’s probably nearer a 15 percent subsidy.

“[The Hammons proposal] is a LOT of money up front and it’s where the hotel ought to be. You don’t have to buy land and the land the city puts in as its part of the equity is something it already owns, a ‘sunk’ cost. The city would have to build a parking garage, but gets revenues from it…it could pay for itself.

“[And] this guy's for real. He deals with universities and municipalities all the time. He's a risk taker and a business guy and he's ready to move it along."

Moving forward after the August deadline for proposals is near definite. But it has been quite the journey.

In late 2000, Fort Worth hired independent consulting firm CH Johnson Consulting, based in Chicago, to conduct an analysis to assess the demand and market potential for a convention center headquarters hotel. HVS International was also retained to conduct a similar survey.

The following Spring, the city requested qualifications from hotel developers, settling on Portman Holdings. Portman had been responsible for the development of the old, 35-story Bank One tower in the Central Business District.

Initially the price tag of the hotel was anticipated to be $75 million for 400 rooms, but with private developers unable to take the financial risk for the project after 9/11, the city turned to the concept of offering certificates of obligation to attract investors and get the hotel built. City officials also increased the scale of the hotel, moving it to 600 rooms with a per-key cost of $200,000.

Then in December of 2002, over 16,000 Fort Worth residents signed a petition calling for a public vote on the certificates, which did not require a vote. The city council postponed its final decision on the hotel and within a week, former mayor Kenneth Barr appointed the blue-ribbon citizens committee to study the future of the project. After its report, new mayor Moncrief turned the project over to an economic development committee led by councilwoman Wendy Davis.

Johnson Consulting will oversee the request for proposal process into late August, as well as make recommendations back to city staff as to the best developer for the project. Once Johnson’s recommendations are in, city staff will review them and make its recommendations to city council in early Fall, Paniagua said.

Hammons and Omni have been invited to submit formal proposals, Paniagua said. Four developers making a second go at the project include Portman and Stormont Hospitality, both of Atlanta; the Garfield Corp. of Dallas; and FaulknerUSA of Austin.

Where the developers propose to build – on city-owned property or on the Tarrant County College site at Lancaster Avenue and 14th Street – is up to the developer, Paniagua said, but the acquisition of TCC’s administrative building would have to be factored into the proposal. The reported price is $8.5 million for the land and a 40,000-square-foot building.

Either way, the decision does not change the college’s plans for a new facility.

"The need for our downtown Fort Worth campus and the college's determination to build it will not be affected one way or the other by the city's decision as to whether or not to purchase our present site. Should the city not make the purchase, it would simply mean that our district administrative offices would be able to remain where they are until the new facility is completed. Should the purchase be made, we would likely have to find temporary quarters, which was part of the plan all along,” said Dr. Bill Lace, executive assistant to the chancellor.

[CTroyMathis]

Hammons has history in downtown

BY MIKE PRICE
Fort Worth Business Press

Proponents of a city-owned convention hotel had cited a need for 600 rooms. The veteran hotelier proposing a private-public alternative for downtown Fort Worth says 350 rooms will do the trick – anything bigger poses a risk of overkill in a local market soon to be affected by massive tourist-trade competition from nearby Grapevine.

John Q. Hammons apparently practices a take-it-or-leave-it policy in his dealings with cities where he might like to build hotels. Too much quibbling, and he’s out the door.

The story goes that Hammons nearly walked out on a public-private Embassy Suites project in Lincoln, Neb., after the governor’s office questioned Hammons’ selection of a building contractor from his hometown in Missouri. Hammons had his way, after all, and Gov. Mike Johanns says today, by way of understatement: “I am now pleased to say that our apprehensiveness was totally unnecessary.”

Hammons deals from a basis in practical experience. At 84, he has been building hotels within the landlocked American Heartland since 1958. He also is fond of folksy homilies, such this famous truism from Mark Twain: “Buy land. They’re not making any more of it.”

Hammons probably first heard the line from Will Rogers, who had appropriated it by the 1920s. The quip would become the basis of a career for Hammons, whose formalized version goes like this: “They’re not making any more land. Hang on to it because you are bound to make a profit by either selling it or developing it.”

Hammons, who wants to develop a $60-million convention hotel with the city of Fort Worth, is a man of determination and foresight, with nearly 150 such properties nationwide to show for his diligence.

He long since has parlayed the hard lessons of a rural, Depression-era upbringing into a reputation as the country’s most assertive and prolific independent developer of hotels. He keeps his interests diversified among such brands as Holiday Inn, Embassy Suites, Marriott and Radisson. According to a privately published biography, Hammons developed a passion for real estate after the stock market crash of 1929 cost his family its dairy farm.

“In 1931, he trapped rabbits to help his family,” writes biographer Susan Drake in a prologue to They Call Him John Q. — A Hotel Legend. “In the ’40s, he went broke manufacturing mortar-less bricks. In the ’50s, he became a millionaire.”

It is that path toward millionaire status that Hammons took in 1958 that exerts the strongest bearing upon his current approach to Fort Worth.

Hammons’ corporate spokesmen have declined to have him speak publicly on the issue. A Dallas representative, Matt Averitt of Publicis Dialog, acknowledged the Fort Worth talks, adding: “Mr. Hammons doesn’t have anything to share at this time.” A telephone message from Scott Tarwater, vice president of sales and marketing for John Q. Hammons Hotels, Inc., said substantially the same.

Where a controversial proposal last year for a city-owned hotel caused an electoral backlash and an upheaval in the municipal government, Hammons’ proposal calls for a hybrid private-public collaboration. This tactic has become increasingly familiar to Hammons, who has found many cities as anxious to beef up their shares of the tourism industry as his company is to practice conservative expansion in search of paying customers. Hammons’ company per se has developed no new properties since the Fall of 2001, but Hammons himself has continued apace with selective expansions. The company’s year-end report for 2002 cited a net loss of $2.8 million, as compared to a net loss of $3.1 million for 2001.

Recent projects in Houston and Dallas have pointed Hammons toward other Texas cities, including Austin and Fort Worth. And successful public-private collaborations in Hammons’ hometown of Springfield, Mo., and at Lincoln, Neb. – in addition to the private-money thrust of most of his projects – suggest possible models for a Fort Worth project.

The city would participate to the extent of providing land for new construction and parking – a condition consistent with Hammons’ tenured practice of using resources other than his own as leverage toward momentum. The proposed Embassy Suites property would be, at 350 rooms, just over half the size of the property that had been conceived as a city-owned venture.

The Fort Worth proposal is a larger near-twin of a project that Hammons is developing at Concord, N.C., involving a $40-million Embassy Suites hotel along with plans for a convention center. The city of Concord (pop.: 58,000) is prepared to contribute a hotel site, said mayor Scott Padgett, and the county commissioners are preparing to vote on whether to raise a hotel occupancy tax rate to bolster the project.

“We’re moving right ahead with everything,” Padgett said last week, “and we’re eager to get all the pieces falling into place. This sort of venture is a godsend to any city with greater ambitions in the convention-and-tourism trade.”

Meanwhile in Olathe, Kan., Hammons’ company has asked the local government to more than triple the size of a special tax-break district to help with the development of a 6,500-seat minor-league baseball stadium and retail center in addition to an upscale hotel, a sporting arena and a conference center.

Both Neosho, Mo., and Fairview, Mo., neighboring towns in Newton County, claim Hammons as a native son, but Hammons has based his career in Springfield, where his name has become synonymous with the hotel industry. In Springfield, his name adorns not only his company, John Q. Hammons Hotels, Inc. (AMEX:JQH), but also street signs, Drury University’s school of architecture and a Class AA baseball stadium under construction.

Hammons is among the last surviving examples of the Horatio Alger work ethic: a self-made businessman in every last respect, right down to his professional name. The “John Q.” tag seems to have started out as a joke, as in “John Q. Public,” a traditional name signifying an average citizen.

He was born James Quentin Hammons, on Feb. 24, 1919, and knew a prosperous upbringing until age 10, when the Depression wiped out the family farm. Hammons completed high school in 1937 and earned a school teaching certificate in 1939, then graduated from a $45-a-month classroom job to a hitch as a cost accountant with the construction company responsible for building the 1,500-mile Alaskan-Canadian Highway. By age 23, according to his biographer, Hammons had accumulated a bankroll of $60,000 at a time when a two-bedroom house could be purchased for $3,000.

Having interrupted his career for military service during World War II, Hammons returned to Springfield and started a brick-manufacturing company utilizing an experimental, no-mortar process. The company lasted only two years, but Hammons began recovering from the loss by investing in parcels of land.

The turning point for Hammons appears to have been the Federal Aid Highway Act of 1956, which brought about the interstate highway system and, with it, an increased demand for overnight lodging. By 1958, Hammons had become one of the first developers to buy into Charles Kemmons Wilson’s pioneering Holiday Inn franchise, which created a template for the modern-day lodging industry.

Starting with 10 Holiday Inn properties, Hammons and a building-contractor partner expanded gradually to 67 properties – concentrating on state capitals and college towns for the sake of capturing the traffic such places automatically generate.

The basic pattern has remained constant, as Hammons explained this Spring to a trade journal, Hotel Business: “I really play the market conditions more than anything. I see that void in a market for a new hotel. I look for strong markets and what’s the direction of the market. If a market does what I think it will, we will build; if it doesn’t, I sell. And inflation in the past has bailed me out on every occasion."

[John T Roberts]

I went to a Town Hall Meeting regarding the hotel tonight. The public was about 50/50 in support vs. against the project. It will be interesting to see what the Council does with the citizen input.

[gc]

Hotel proposals narrowed to 4
By Anna M. Tinsley;Max B. Baker
Star-Telegram Staff Writers
http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/business/7242303.htm

FORT WORTH - City officials picked four developers Tuesday to interview about proposals to build a luxury, 400-room or larger convention center hotel downtown.

The four companies -- Austin Commercial in Dallas, Hines in Dallas, Omni Hotels in Irving and Stormont Hospitality Group in Atlanta -- were chosen unanimously by the Central City Revitalization and Economic Development Committee.

The committee is scheduled to interview those companies behind closed doors Nov. 17, and it could recommend the top one or two by early December to begin further negotiations with the city, said Councilwoman Wendy Davis, who heads the committee.

"We are very pleased," Davis said. "We have some wonderful proposals to choose from -- two really significantly would rely on private proposals, two would rely on public partnerships."

Davis said the four developers offer the best value to the city, are able to provide equity and debt financing, showed innovation and creativity and offered minimal financial risk to the city.

Three of the developers -- Austin Commercial, Hines and Stormont -- indicated that they'd partner with Hilton Hotels.

Austin Commercial in Dallas indicated that it would also partner with Gideon Toal, The Projects Group and Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum. Hines would also partner with Hellmuth, Obata + Kassabaum and with Centex Construction Co. Stormont would also partner with Cooper Carry. Omni Hotels in Irving didn't list any partners.

"Our evaluation tells us that each of these proposals would result in a first-class hotel that would complement the newly renovated convention center and would help our city become more competitive in the convention business," Davis said.

This is the latest step in the ongoing process to determine whether the city should build, or find a partner to build, a downtown convention hotel.

City staff sought hotel proposals this summer and received nine. City consultants and elected leaders have been reviewing the proposals since then.

"It's going to be a matter of interviewing them and finding out more about their plan," said Councilman Frank Moss, a committee member.

Councilman John Stevenson, who also serves on the committee, said he was encouraged by the number of proposals.

"I look forward to getting into the down-and-dirty details of negotiating," Stevenson said. "I'm absolutely convinced we will find something to meet our needs."

The city last considered building a hotel with a private developer in 2001, but changed course the next year with plans to build a city-owned hotel financed with the sale of certificates of obligation. That proposal was tabled after a petition drive against it that would have forced the issue to be decided by voters.

Clayton Elliott, a senior vice president at Hines, said he was "happy to hear the news" that his firm was among the four picked by the city for further negotiations.

Hines proposes building a 600-room, 15-story, four-star hotel that would include restaurants, a lobby lounge, pool, health club and a business center, Elliott said. The plan includes a main ballroom, junior ballroom and breakout meeting space.

The affiliation with Hilton would be open to further discussion, Elliott said.

The hotel's final design has not been determined but would be "reflective of downtown Fort Worth and the new convention center as well," he said.

"We want to design a project that will help showcase Fort Worth's heritage and amenities and give guests a superior value," Elliott said.

Ralph Cook, a senior project manager for Austin Commercial in Dallas, said his firm would "love to do this job."

"It's a great project, and I think it will do a lot for economic development in Fort Worth," he said. Austin Commercial is overseeing renovations at the Fort Worth Convention Center.

Although Cook stressed that the proposal is "totally flexible," Austin initially proposed an 18-story, 560-room hotel that would include ballrooms, meeting space and a full-service concierge. The guest rooms would be considered three- to four-star amenities.

He said decisions about what to include in the final proposal would ultimately hinge on what the city wants and what the operator determines is the "best economic solution."

Major decisions still to be made would include where to locate the hotel and parking facilities, he said.

Scott Johnson of Omni Hotels in Irving would not discuss the specifics of his company's proposal but said that it "would result in a hotel that exceeds all of the requirements the city asked for."

"We're looking forward to presenting to the City Council next week why we are the best option for the city of Fort Worth," he said. "At the end of the day, we believe we are going to be selected."

Steve Moffett, the spokesman for Stormont Hospitality Group in Atlanta, was not available for comment.

Five other companies had submitted proposals but were not picked by the committee for further negotiation. They are: FaulknerUSA of Austin, which had proposed partnering with acclaimed architect David M. Schwarz; Garfield Traub Development in Dallas; John Q. Hammons Industries in Springfield, Mo.; Phelps Program Management in Denver; and TVS in Atlanta.

A blue-ribbon committee studying the issue this year recommended that the city's portion of any hotel project be funded by selling revenue bonds, which don't use taxpayer funds to repay debt. The bonds instead would use hotel profits and a share of the hotel-motel tax.

[gc]

Fort Worth Negotiates with Developers for Convention Center Hotel
By Connie Gore - Last updated: Dec 3, 2003 07:56AM
http://www.globest.com/RMIT5JECIND.html

FORT WORTH-A publicly funded convention center hotel will be pitted against a privately owned development as Fort Worth City Council gives a unanimous go-ahead to simultaneously negotiate with developers on both sides of the fence. There is a 90-day deadline to complete talks for a facility with at least 400 rooms.
Most of this year has been spent talking about the project, with taxpayers taking a vocal stand. The upshot of the outcry was a blue ribbon committee that came out in favor of revenue-bond financing with debt covered by hotel profits and a percentage of the hotel-motel tax rather than sales or property taxes.

On one side of the fence is Omni Hotels Inc. of Irving, which is proposing a 600-room privately funded project, and the other side has Austin Commercial Inc. of Dallas, the city's contractor for the convention center expansion which is holding a publicly funded plan for 560 rooms with Beverly Hills, CA-based Hilton Hotels Corp. as the operator. Projected costs are being kept under wraps as teams dig in for the talks although the rumored price is in the neighborhood of $200 million.

The proposals are "very different," Scott Johnson, Omni's vice president of development and acquisitions, tells GlobeSt.com of the plan to build a Four Diamond facility. Omni's proposal to develop and own would require the city to build a parking garage and "reinvest" in the form of abatements or a tax refund.

Few cities in recent years have gone the private route, Johnson acknowledges. Fort Worth was poised to follow others with a city-owned facility until constituents spoke out, launching petition drives to beat down the plan. Austin Commercial, a builder of noted hotels in Dallas and the overseer for Fort Worth's $75-million convention center expansion, didn't return telephone calls by publication time to discuss its publicly funded proposal.

Johnson says Omni sees "opportunities like this all over the country." He says Fort Worth got the nod from its corporate headquarters neighbor to the east because "we like the infrastructure that Fort Worth has built with Sundance Square, the great theaters and the vibrant nature of the city." The Omni flag flies over 40 hotels with 15,000 rooms in the US, Canada and Mexico, of which 10 are located in Texas.

[John T Roberts]

Hopefully, these negotiations will be successful and Fort Worth will have a great Convention Center Hotel and an addition to the city's skyline.

[gc]

Indeed John. That would be very nice.

[John T Roberts]

The location of the hotel is also open ended. There are four blocks between the SBC Building and Lancaster. The hotel can be built on any of the four blocks. The parking garage will be constructed on an adjacent block.

[gc]

Fort Worth Convention Center: Possibly paving the way for an anchor hotel
2003 Best Rehabilitation/Renovation
Elaine Hellmund - Correspondent
http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2004/03/01/focus8.html

With a gleaming, expanded convention center and the old Interstate-30 elevated looming over Lancaster Avenue now gone, the southeast end of downtown Fort Worth is poised to attract a big anchor hotel, says Marsha Anderson with the city's public events department.

"We hope to attract more and larger conventions with our expanded facility, and we're pursuing building a big anchor hotel," she said.

Austin Commercial with Hilton Corp. and Omni Corp. have been weeded out of nine who made proposals to the city, Anderson said.

Without the convention center's 352,000-square-foot expansion, "there wouldn't be the potential for a hotel, and the Lancaster redevelopment wouldn't look as bright and shiny," says Anderson. "We're the jumping off point for the Lancaster Avenue redevelopment."

Besides fueling development in the central business district, the center's expansion is a boon for the city's convention and tourism business, she adds.

The $75 million renovation and expansion of the Fort Worth Convention Center began in 2000 and was completed in May. Phase I, finished in 2002, included the new south entry façade facing the Water Gardens, 56,000 square feet of exhibit space, 12,500 square feet of meeting rooms, and a 30,000-square-foot ballroom and loading docks. Phase II added 25,000 square feet of exhibit space and another 22,500 square feet of meeting room space. Altogether the upgraded convention center now boasts 714,000 square feet, including 252,000 square feet of exhibit space, 41 breakout rooms and anevents plaza.

Attracting and hosting conventions amongst the chaos of the renovation was tricky, Anderson admits.

"That was probably the hardest part of the renovation package--the floor plan daily was fluid. The thing we're most proud of is that there were very few 'dark days' due to construction. We were still able to hold conventions and events, and those who stuck with us during the construction certainly are coming back to us now that it's done."

Anderson credits competent management by construction vendor Austin Commercial for the surprisingly few obstacles encountered during the project. Surrounding businesses also were supportive and flexible, with hotels providing meeting space as last-minute needs arose, she says.

"Certainly the hospitality industry in Fort Worth deserves a pat on the back as well as the groups who brought their meetings here and trusted us."

The convention center, bought by the city in 1996, opened in 1969 with a 14,000-seat arena, a 100,000-square-foot exhibit hall and a 3,000-seat performing arts theatre. The John F. Kennedy Theatre was demolished in 2000 to make way for the south-end expansion, which consists of the ballroom and expanded meeting and exhibit space.

In 1998, $19 million of obligation bonds were approved for the expansion and renovation project. A 2% increase in the hotel/motel tax also was allocated in 1998 and generated approximately $21 million. A tax on rental car fees was approved by the city of Euless for the DFW Airport Rental Car Complex in 1999; the tax revenue is shared among Euless, Fort Worth and Dallas, and Fort Worth rental car fee tax revenue was dedicated to expansion.

[gc]

Omni is likely to build hotel
By Anna M. Tinsley - Star-Telegram Staff Writer
http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/local/8539057.htm

FORT WORTH - A City Council committee Tuesday recommended that Omni Hotels of Irving build a privately owned, luxury convention center hotel downtown, ending months of closed-door negotiations.

The hotel project -- the center of public criticism in 2002 when council members wanted to build a publicly funded facility -- could include some public funding for a parking garage or other amenities.

The full council is expected to be briefed on the proposal next week and could vote within a month on whether to move forward with the hotel, officials said.

"This was the best fit for what the city wants, with the quality of products, quantity of rooms and the least upfront money from the city," said Councilwoman Wendy Davis, who heads the council's Central City Revitalization and Economic Development Committee.

"Our community has said to us that they don't think the city needs to be in the hotel business."

The committee -- which includes Councilmen Jim Lane, Frank Moss and John Stevenson -- voted unanimously to proceed toward making a contract with Omni Hotel.

Davis and others were tight-lipped Tuesday about details of the deal and declined to explain how much public money would be needed. They did say, however, that if the council approves the project, the hotel could be operating by fall 2006.

Omni officials did not respond to a telephone call late Tuesday seeking comment.

Previously, Omni officials told the Star-Telegram that they had proposed a 21-story, 600-room hotel with about 50,000 square feet of dedicated meeting space.

That plan included a grand ballroom and a junior ballroom, and the guest-room amenities would be considered "four diamond," Scott Johnson, vice president of acquisitions and development for Omni, said at the time.

Johnson has said that under Omni's proposal, the developer would own the hotel but the city would pay for a parking structure and could use sales taxes, hotel-motel taxes or property taxes to help defray those costs.

Omni Hotels, based in Irving and founded in 1958, has 40 hotels in the United States, Canada and Mexico, including nine in Texas, according to the company's Web site.

Omni Hotels typically offer four-star amenities and services such as marble guest bathrooms, gourmet dining, children's programs, voice mail and modem connections, according to the Web site.

The council committee picked Omni over two other developers. Atlanta-based Stormont had recommended a privately funded hotel, and Austin Commercial -- which oversaw renovations at the Fort Worth Convention Center -- had submitted a proposal for a publicly owned hotel.

"I'm delighted we're down to a single principal player that has placed a proposal before the committee," Mayor Mike Moncrief said.

"This complies with my belief the city of Fort Worth should not be in the hotel business, competing against existing hotels," Moncrief said. "I've never felt that was appropriate."

The committee recommendation is the latest evolution of a possible convention center hotel -- a proposal council members have considered, in some shape or form, for years.

City leaders say the city is losing convention business, despite the $75 million renovation to the convention center.

"This is going to position us against other cities of our size very, very well," Davis said. "We'll never be Las Vegas, New York or Los Angeles. But we have a market we compete in. And we are unique."

The city last considered building a hotel with a private developer in 2001, when officials appeared ready to negotiate a deal with Atlanta-based Portman Holdings.

By 2002, city leaders had changed course, announcing plans to build a 600-room, city-owned hotel by issuing $160 million in certificates of obligation, a type of debt that doesn't require voter approval.

But the plan drew fierce opposition -- and organized resistance -- from residents, who submitted a petition with more than 16,000 signatures to force the issue to a public vote. Then-Mayor Kenneth Barr instead created a blue-ribbon committee to study the project further.

After months of study, the blue-ribbon committee last year recommended that the city's portion of any hotel project be funded by selling revenue bonds, financing that doesn't use taxpayer funds to repay debt. The council committee has studied the issue since June.

Former Mayor Bob Bolen, who served on the blue-ribbon committee, said Tuesday that he is unfamiliar with details of the proposed deal but that Omni is a respected developer.

"This is certainly something that is worth really looking at," Bolen said. "There's no question in my mind that, long-term, we need more first-class hotel rooms downtown."

Neither Austin Commercial nor Stormont officials returned telephone calls from the Star-Telegram late Tuesday.

Moss said the committee responded to public concerns that the city not bear financial risk in the hotel project.

"We've looked at the options, and this [Omni] is the best option on the table," Moss said. "Citizens are more comfortable going private than public.

"Citizens have indicated before what they wanted."

Davis said the council will discuss the proposal further and could conduct a public meeting to get additional feedback from residents.

"This has been a volatile issue in the past," she said. "It's very easy to say, from a risk standpoint, that the public is better off going forward with a private deal.

"I think that's the way to go."

[CTroyMathis]

Some more news on the Omni deal nearing:
City nears 'private' deal with Omni for convention hotel (http://www.fwbusinesspress.com/default.asp?sourceid=&smenu=110&twindow=&mad=&sdetail=1760&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=&ccat=&restate=&restatus=&reoption=&retype=&repmin=&repmax=&rebed=&rebath=&sal=).

[crescentboi]

Does anyone have a photo of where this would be? I just can't picture it. Haven't been to FW in a long time.

[John T Roberts]

Crescentboi, I don't normally take photographs of surface parking lots, but I do have a couple of pictures of the Fort Worth Convention Center with the site in part of the photos.

The site is on the north side of 13th St. between Throckmorton and Houston. Currently the site is a super block that extends all the way up to 11th. When the hotel is constructed, 12th Street will be rebuilt between Houston and Throckmorton. The block between 11th and 12th will be the site for the new parking garage.

Here are the pictures. The first shows the site to the far left of the photo where the cars are parked. Those vehicles are on 13th Street.
http://www.fortwortharchitecture.com/convcen-phase1.jpg

In this photo, I'm standing on the hotel site:
http://www.fortwortharchitecture.com/convcen-phase2.jpg

[crescentboi]

thanks! that's a pretty nice convention center. i just wish the all of dallas's would look as nice as that one. i love the new areas of our new cvc, but i really don't like that big round area in the back towards city hall. it's like someone forgot that entire end of the building! looks aweful compared to the other side. IMO

[John T Roberts]

That's because that is the oldest part of the Dallas Convention Center. The same is true of the one here. It was originally built in 1968 and the arena sits at the north end and its architectural style reeks of the 1960's. The areas that I have shown here are the new addition that was completed in two phases in 2003. Even with these additions, the center is rather small with a little shy of 800,000 square feet total. The ugly arena is scheduled to be replaced with a new one in the Cultural District and more exhibit space, meeting rooms, and a grand ballroom will be constructed in its place. Officials and architects have never given an overall size of the facility once the third phase is completed.

[texcolo]

Whaddya talkin' about????

The 60's were cool.

[Lakewooder]

Dallas Memorial Auditorium -- Hey, the Beatles played there!

[C_bookie5]

Go Beatles!

[John T Roberts]

The first parts of the Dallas Convention Center, including Memorial Auditorium was built in 1957.

[gc]

I have come across what I think will be the Fort Worth Convention Center Hotel. Does anyone have additional information?

[Foucault]

Conventional.

[gc]

And a little more that a birdie told me...

People visiting fort worth will have a new place to stay.. by 2007.

A brand new 600-room Omni Hotel. The site is on the west side of the Fort Worth Convention Center ...on land that is now vacant. The Irving-based hotel chain is now wrapping up the agreement with the city. The 90-million dollar project calls for tax abatements -- but no financial risk on part of the city. Council members could vote on the tax incentives next month. Omni representatives say the 600-room hotel will feature a Texas theme, two restaurants, a bar and two parking garages.

[John T Roberts]

GC, where did you get the rendering? I have one that was furnished to me that is about the size of the thumbnail above and that was the largest size that was supposedly available.

[gc]

I have been advised of one more thing. Apparently this is purely a conceptual rendering. The architects for the project have not been hired yet. Repeat: This is not the final design.

Sorry for the premature post.

[bloodandpopcorn]

I hope the design is similiar to that, I think it would fit in nicely to the area.

[freewaytincan]

Whaddya talkin' about????

The 60's were cool.

If you can remember them...

[Kelley USA]

Channel 5 and Channel 8 both did a story on this earlier this week. The rendering they had looked a little bit different from what I can tell...

[gc]

FW gives blessing to downtown hotel
03:06 AM CDT on Friday, August 6, 2004
By JEFF MOSIER / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/080604dnmetfwhotel.99b7f.html

FORT WORTH – After two years of debates and battles, the Fort Worth City Council approved plans late Thursday for a downtown convention center hotel. The proposal calls for Omni Hotels Corp. to build a 600-room, $90 million luxury hotel on the west side of the Fort Worth Convention Center. In exchange, the Irving-based chain would receive tax breaks, refunds and incentives worth more than $50 million.

The city would also build two parking garages, one of which would be given to the Omni Hotel. City officials said a new downtown hotel is badly needed to attract more conventions to Cowtown. The city paid for a $75 million expansion that modernized and doubled the size of the facility, but officials said they don't have the hotel space to keep up with the bigger convention center.

"Without a convention center hotel, I think the convention center would never have the long-term payoff that it would otherwise," said Doug Harman, head of the Fort Worth Convention & Visitors Bureau. Studies have shown that Fort Worth lags other major cities in the ratio of nearby hotel rooms to convention space. In a January survey, the city had 4.7 rooms per 1,000 square feet of meeting space within one mile of the convention center. That ranked it fifth from the bottom. Arlington finished second on the list with 29.3 rooms.

City Council member Jim Lane said the hotel will help Fort Worth continue its transformation into a destination. "I know of no other place in Texas that has this much potential to bring in tourists," he said. The vote Thursday set the basic terms of the contract between the city and Omni and allows the two parties to continue negotiating the details. City officials have discussed the need for a convention center hotel since the 1980s, but the issue has heated up in the last two years. In 2002, the City Council recommended building its own $160 million hotel adjacent to the convention center.

That proposal led to a petition drive to force the council to put the issue to a public vote. More than 15,000 voters signed the lists demanding that the city allow them to make the final decision. The council considered calling for a 2003 election but instead solicited proposals from private developers. Omni was one of three companies that offered to build a hotel on the two city blocks that are now parking lots. Although there are several hotels in downtown Fort Worth, Marsha Anderson, a spokeswoman for the Fort Worth Convention Center, said there aren't nearly enough.

"What we've heard over and over is that they [conventioneers] much prefer to have hotel rooms that are within walking distance of the hotel rather than spread all over the county," she said. "I don't know if you can ever have too many first-class hotel rooms." The tax breaks from the city would add up to an estimated $22.1 million in city sales tax, hotel tax and property tax rebates over 10 years. The state would also rebate $16.9 million in hotel and sales taxes, and the county would forgo $1.8 million in property taxes.

During a 20-year period, city officials estimate, the hotel would bring in an additional $34.6 million in local taxes and have a $1.6 billion impact, which includes money spent in restaurants, stores and other tourist-related businesses. To meet its end of the deal, Omni would agree to maintain the hotel to a 4-diamond standard as specified by AAA travel guides and provide some of the construction contracts to Fort Worth- and minority-owned businesses.

The Texas-themed hotel would feature two restaurants, 48,000 square feet of meeting space and other amenities. "It would be what you would normally see in an upscale hotel," said Joe Paniagua, an assistant city manager in Fort Worth. Mr. Harman said he's not aware of any similar hotels that have been built recently that didn't receive large tax rebates. "The simple fact is that hotels of this nature aren't built unless there are very substantial municipal inducements," he said.

[gc]

This is good to hear. Two official hotel announcements within days of each in DTFW.

Who wants to bet they fit in perfect with the rest of the buildings in FW?

[Kelley USA]

Fort Worth knows how to get things done!!! With all they have going on in DTFW- what would it look like with a new Cowboy Stadium :)

[rantanamo]

I'd rather they have the stadium than Arlington.

[Kelley USA]

My thought exactly!

[gc]

FW hotel plans spark new fears
Filling rooms during conventions isn't a problem, but oversupply worries some
David Giddens - Staff Writer
http://dallas.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2004/08/23/story4.html?page=1

Fort Worth can use the planned addition of 900 upscale hotel rooms during the next three years to its advantage in securing and -- more importantly -- upgrading future convention business, city officials say. But industry watchers and local hotel executives say the city also faces a considerable challenge in keeping those rooms occupied between events at the Fort Worth Convention Center. Backed with nearly $50 million in economic incentives from the city, Irving-based Omni Hotels is moving forward on a plan for a 600-room, $90 million hotel across the street from the convention center that could start construction in the next six to nine months.

New player

On Aug. 4, the day before the city council voted to approve moving forward with the Omni project, hotel developer John Q. Hammons, based in Springfield, Mo., unexpectedly announced it would build a full-service, 300-room Embassy Suites hotel just south of the convention center, that is expected to cost up to $40 million. No governmental incentives have been requested for the project, which could be under construction before the end of the year.

Doug Harman, president of the Fort Worth Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the new hotels will directly affect the city's ability to draw professional, technical and business-oriented conventions, such as the International Electronic and Electrical Engineers convention that drew nearly 12,000 attendees in early June. In a letter written to Kirk Slaughter, the city's director for facilities and events, IEEE exhibition manager Harlan Howe Jr., lauded the convention center facilities, but complained of "inadequate facilities and the poor performance of the hotels." He went on to say that the hotel situation, if left in its current state, would prevent the group from returning to the city.

"These are the types of groups that Fort Worth has missed in a dramatic way," Harman said. "We've done very well with the direct marketing and religious group business. But groups like the IEEE have a somewhat different set of expectations and requirements."

Confidence

Both of the new hotel developers say their projects won't be affected by the other's plans, and expressed confidence that the market can support both projects. Scott Johnson, vice president of acquisitions and development for Omni Hotels, said the city is the attraction Omni is banking on as the main draw for business. "Fort Worth bills itself as the most 'Texas' city in the state, and we would agree," he said. "When you stay in Fort Worth, you get the true flavor of what Texas is about. It provides something to do outside of a convention, and the same can't be said about most downtown environments."

Scott Tarwater, a senior vice president for John Q. Hammons Hotels Inc., said the Omni has "positive bearing" on the proposed Embassy Suites project, and pointed to Grapevine as an analogy, where some analysts predicted a sharp decline in the company's 324-room Embassy Suites DFW Outdoor World when the giant Gaylord Texan opened its doors earlier this year. Instead, business has picked up, with occupancy rates running about 80%, he said. City Councilwoman Wendy Davis said studies indicate an ability to support an additional 1,200 first-class hotel rooms.

"The Omni is a good jump start, and more can only help," she said. "I think it could deal a death blow to hotels in downtown that are not providing quality rooms because they won't be able to compete." Although the report admits new rooms will draw business away from other downtown upscale hotels such as the Courtyard by Marriott and the Renaissance Worthington for the first couple of years they are open, they should recover fairly quickly, Davis said. Bob Jameson, general manager of the Renaissance Worthington, doesn't share that optimism.

"(For) a market as small as Fort Worth, trying to absorb that number of rooms is going to be pretty traumatic for a period of time," he said. "I'm not worried about the days the Omni is filled with conventions; I'm worried about the days in between, when we're all trying to live off the same volume of business that exists today, with no new demand generators coming into the market."

[Geaux Tigers]

Deal in place for downtown hotel

By Anna M. Tinsley
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
<!-- begin body-content -->

FORT WORTH - After months of negotiations, city leaders say they've hammered out the final details for Omni Hotels to build a 600-room luxury hotel downtown -- and construction could start by the end of the year.

For more than seven months, the city and Omni have been negotiating over a privately owned, Texas-themed hotel across from the Fort Worth Convention Center. The plan includes nearly $50 million in public money. The overall cost is projected to be more than $90 million.

"This is going to light up the south end of downtown," Mayor Mike Moncrief said. "It will provide more opportunities to attract larger conventions.

"There are some city incentives, but this will be a privately built hotel," he said. "The city is not getting into the hotel business, nor should it."

The final proposal -- which includes an underground garage and possibly condominiums on top of the hotel -- will be presented publicly during a City Council meeting March 24.

Council members could vote on the deal by March 29, and if they approve, Omni could break ground by the end of the year, officials said.

The plan calls for about $48.5 million in tax rebates and refunds from the city, county and state and $6 million for a city-built, 400-space parking garage.

"We are coming to Fort Worth because we believe it's a great American city and a place we want to do business," said Scott Johnson, Omni's vice president for acquisitions and development. "We're ecstatic about the progress we've made.

"It has been a long road, and we are anxious to kick this project off."

In the works for more than two years, this plan differs from one in 2002 that called for the city to build a hotel with taxpayer money. Public outrage and a petition drive to force the issue before voters quelled that plan.

City leaders say this version is better because the bulk of the public funds would come from hotel and sales taxes generated by the hotel.

Johnson said that it could take about two years to build the hotel -- of "four-diamond" quality -- and that it could open in late 2007 or early 2008.

Omni plans to build a 15-to 21-story hotel, with 48,000 square feet of meeting space, two restaurants, a pool and an exercise facility on two blocks of city-owned land west of the convention center.

Omni would lease the site from the city for $10,000 a year for 99 years and could buy the land for $1 million after 10 years. It could sell the hotel after three years of operation, with city approval.

"This hotel is so important for the convention and tourism industry in Fort Worth," said Kirk Slaughter, the city's public events director. "It will really help attract business to the community.

"It is going to be a great addition to Fort Worth."

Public funding

Under the plan, city officials say Omni would receive:

• $29.8 million in city rebates and funding, mainly through hotel and sales taxes collected at the hotel over 10 years. This includes $6 million for a 400-space garage to go under the hotel and be paid for with reserve funds. Previous plans called for an above-ground garage that would have been shared by the city and Omni.

• $16.9 million in state rebates from hotel and sales taxes generated by the hotel in its first 10 years.

• $1.8 million in refunded county property taxes generated by the hotel in its first 10 years. No school taxes would be used.

• A 10-year catering contract for convention center events.

In return, Omni would be required to award a portion of its contracts to minority- and women-owned businesses and a share of new jobs to Fort Worth residents. As much as 80 percent of the hotel rooms could be set aside for future conventions.

Johnson said a decision on whether to include condos at the top of the hotel will be made in coming months.

"We're doing our due diligence on that now, studying the market," Johnson said. "We believe that condominiums on top of our hotel would be a great addition. Now we need to figure out if there's a market for it."

Assistant City Manager Joe Paniagua said any condos would add to the total $90 million cost and would not receive a tax abatement from the city.

City officials have long said a hotel is needed because, despite a $75 million renovation of the convention center, Fort Worth is losing convention business to other cities.

"We have everything the people of Texas, United States and around the world would want to come and see," Councilman Jim Lane said. "We upgraded the convention center, and now we need a convention center hotel.

"There are good hotels downtown, but not one really dedicated to the convention business," he said. "This hotel will be a great amenity for Fort Worth."

Hurting other hotels?

Not everyone is convinced.

Stan Kennedy, vice president and general manager for the Radisson Plaza Hotel, said he's concerned that a convention center hotel could strip business from other downtown hotels.

"Our concern is, can the existing market take on additional supply without increased demand?" he said. "Short-term, this is going to have a negative effect on all the hotels here.

"It's our hope that long-term, we can fill in with new business."

Omni officials said they believe such fears are unfounded.

"We don't feel that we're going to be picking off business from the current market," said Robert Rowling, owner of TRT Holdings, Omni's parent company. "Whatever we take away, we hope would be more than made up from new business brought to town."

Steve Hollern, a vocal opponent to the 2002 plan, served on a blue-ribbon committee that reviewed the proposal. He maintained through the process that a privately financed hotel would be best.

"I think this is far superior to the plan on the table two years ago," he said. "I still have a nagging worry that if we don't grow the room nights, it could hurt other hotels.

"I hope my concerns are not well-founded," Hollern said. "I hope we get the tourism we're shooting for. It's a necessary thing that we go forward on this."

Paniagua said the past few months have been spent negotiating the finer points of the deal.

But it was time well spent, Paniagua said, because he believes that this is a good deal for the city.

"If the hotel has a rough year, the city still doesn't put any additional money into it," he said. "We don't bear any of the financial risk."

[gc]

^ Awesome.

Remember this post? --> http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showpost.php?p=30258&postcount=31

[texman]

Makes Dallas look stupid. Or is Dallas Conv. Center Hotel plans set in stone?

[drumguy8800]

The Fort Worth Convention Center is such a beautiful color/design. I love how Fort Worth embraces its Texan-ness. Dallas does everything in its power to abandon the image.

[msutton]

^
|
|
|


...why i love dallas

[Geaux Tigers]

Thanks for merging my post. I knew there was a FW Convention Center Hotel thread around here somewhere....

[Mballar]

Makes Dallas look stupid. Or is Dallas Conv. Center Hotel plans set in stone?
I personally think that a Convention Center Hotel makes more sense for Ft. Worth than Dallas. I'm glad to see them aggressively moving forward on this.

[barrycb]

The Fort Worth Convention Center is such a beautiful color/design. I love how Fort Worth embraces its Texan-ness. Dallas does everything in its power to abandon the image.


I agree drummy. However in the long run, the dichotomy of styles and vibes should make DFW a more interesting place to visit. Where else can you find cosmo and cowboy within 30 miles off each other?