The gist
The plan is to build a boutique hotel and convention center with a parking garage located just east of city hall.
The convention center is the only piece of the project included on the May 3 election ballot for bond approval. It would include conference rooms, meeting rooms, a ballroom, the hotel entrance, hotel amenities and a restaurant.
The full-service hotel would have 200 rooms and be privately owned and operated. The city will own the convention center and lease it to the hotel for operation.
“[Developer Garfield Public/Private] will take the history of Roanoke and they will build that hotel to fit within our model of what Roanoke is, but our team has worked diligently to find a developer that we knew that could help us propel this project and make this project a reality,” Mayor Scooter Gierisch said.
Funding the project
The city does not plan to raise property taxes to fund the project. The funding will come from different tax revenues, including sales tax, Hotel Occupancy Tax, a rebate on the sales tax collected by the state and user fees.
The city will use 1% of the local sales tax collected to fund the project. In addition, officials can use the 0.5% of sales tax dedicated to economic development to help if needed, Gierisch said.
The sales tax would be rebated for any hotel, restaurants, bars, retail establishments, swimming pools and swimming facilities within 1,000 feet of the convention center, added a representative from Garfield Public/Private.
The state collects 6.25% of sales tax and, because of Roanoke’s qualified city status, the city will get that sales tax back for 10 years in order to fund the project, Gierisch said.
The Hotel Occupancy Tax is a tax the city can levy on a person staying at a hotel. The state requires 6% and the city charges 7% of the price paid for the room. The city will receive the full 13% for the Hotel Occupancy Tax due to its qualified city status, Gierisch said.
User fees include any fees that the city requires for services or facilities, such as building permitting and inspection fees.
The city also wants to add a 2% venue tax, which is an additional tax for guests staying at the hotel. It could raise approximately $350,000 to $400,000 annually, Gierisch said.
This tax has to receive voter approval and is not currently on the ballot for the May 3 election.
What they’re saying
"We are in a very unique region,” said Sally Aldridge, president of the Metroport Chamber of Commerce. “We are very blessed to have a lot of global and Fortune 500 [and] 100s [businesses] in this area. They need this type of venue, not only to bring their visitors in, but to host their conferences and conventions.”
“This is huge for us because as a small hotel, not everybody wants to spend that money to stay at bigger hotels,” said Tina Patel, owner of Comfort Suites in Roanoke. “It really helps us in smaller hotels.”
“Candidly, right now, we're kind of a daytime visit,” Roanoke City Manager Cody Petree said. “We really want to be where people come during the week to conventions and stay several days and then walk up and down the street and spend time and money.”
The background
Council approved a partnership with Garfield Public/Private for $400,000 to develop a design for the hotel, convention center and parking garage Nov. 12, Gierisch said.
The city had previously planned on putting a Peabody Hotel in the open area by city hall, but plans fell through due to the COVID-19 pandemic and struggles in funding, Community Impact previously reported.
