Bryant a good choice for hotel project
By the Messenger-Inquirer
Published: Saturday, January 16, 2010 12:00 AM CST
There's been an air of expectation since city and county officials committed up to $79 million in local tax dollars to downtown Owensboro last year. This show of public support for revitalizing Owensboro's core waited for a similar signal from the private sector.
The multimillion-dollar signal many were waiting for came this week. The selection of a "preferred developer" is the next step toward the construction of a five- to seven-story, $20 million hotel that with a planned indoor events center will be a cornerstone for downtown Owensboro. This investment by the Malcolm Bryant Corp. -- a company with a track record and roots in this community -- marks a major step forward for downtown and brings the type of local partnership that will be essential to downtown's success.
The request for hotel proposals made in the middle of 2009 could easily have generated little or no response. Being asked to make this size of an investment in this community during a recession was enough to give any developer pause. But the request brought five responses, three of which met the general criteria this community was looking for.
Among those three, the Malcolm Bryant Corp.'s proposal offered the most stable and solid financing, according to the search committee. Bryant's plan doesn't require local government to help back the financing, as one of the proposals did, and will take advantage of the federal New Markets Tax Credit program -- a major incentive that can help boost the project.
Those who question whether Bryant's past membership on the Economic Development Corp. or standing and connections helped him receive the nod should know that what Bryant has been selected for is the risk and responsibility that go with making such a significant investment. Bryant certainly understands that risk and was the only applicant to perform his own feasibility study to best determine the proper size for the hotel.
Who else in this community was willing to step forward when asked if they were willing to make a $20 million investment in downtown?
The selection committee certainly found itself in a potentially unwinnable position. If they had selected someone from outside this community, they surely would have been criticized for not supporting local business. Selecting someone who is rooted in this community has generated some talk of the "good old boy" network at work.
What it appears the selection committee did was pick the developer with the most responsible, solid proposal on the table, and one that will stand by the commitment it will take to make this hotel and downtown work. This community should be grateful that one among them was willing to take that step forward.
The Hampton Inn & Suites could be just the first of several hotels in the downtown area. The goal of the indoor events center that is now being planned should be to draw crowds bigger than what the Bryant hotel alone can hold in its 150 rooms. And local officials have said that is the goal.
So much rides on the success of this first major private investment in downtown. This community is fortunate to have someone from within its ranks who has the experience and ability to make such a project succeed during such a critical time in its history.
