Noblesville offers $6M to lure Embassy Suites with conference center
Noblesville is offering more than $6 million in incentives to lure a $30 million Embassy Suites and attached conference center to I-69 Exit 210.
Mayor John Ditslear has made building a conference center one of his priorities. When Sun Development and Management Corp. approached the city with plans to build the hotel along the bustling interstate, Ditslear saw an opportunity. He asked what incentives the company would need to include an attached conference center in the project.
"This is really important for us with all of the functions we have out there," Ditslear said. "This will draw people to do business in Noblesville. I think the climate is right for this."
The Embassy Suites would include 190 suites and 25,000 square feet of conference and meeting space, making it the largest facility of its kind in Hamilton County.
Subsidizing such a project to such a degree is a rare move for a Hamilton County municipality. Through a bond, Noblesville proposes to front the $4 million estimated construction cost of the conference center plus $2 million toward general infrastructure costs for the 15-acre property. The city also is offering a 100-percent 10-year property tax abatement on the convention center, the value of which hasn't yet been determined.
The City Council approved the general outline of the deal Oct. 27. On Tuesday the council will consider making the 15-acre parcel an economic revitalization area, which makes it eligible for tax incentives. The council will hold a public hearing and vote Dec. 8.
Ditslear believes the conference center is positioned to succeed at I-69 Exit 210, which includes two major hospitals, multiple corporate headquarters, Klipsch Music Center and the Hamilton Town Center mall. The I-69 corridor has been ripe for economic development through Hamilton County, with Ikea announcing plans earlier this month to build a 296,000-square-foot furniture store 5 miles to the south in Fishers.
"We're excited about our growth, and we're excited about the future of Noblesville," Ditslear said.
Hamilton County Tourism Inc. Executive Director Brenda Myers said the convention center could be a game changer. She said many Midwest and Indiana-based associations that host conventions and trade shows are too large for Hamilton County. She said the Noblesville convention center will fill that gap by offering flexible convention space with built-in dining service in a hotel with nearby amenities.
Two other hotels at Exit 210, she said, will be able to accommodate spill over traffic for conventions if the Embassy Suites books all of its rooms. A Cambria Suites with 130 rooms opened six years ago, and a Holiday Inn Express with 120 rooms will break ground in 2016.
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After learning of the pending deal in Noblesville, she decided to hire two staffers over the next two years to focus on convention sales and planning. She said the county hadn't bothered to apply for many conventions because it simply didn't have the space.
She acknowledged the amount of incentives offered to land the deal.
"Every community has priorities," she said, "and this has been a priority for Noblesville. I think it's a sound investment, although it does seem like a lot. I understand that."
She said the only comparable property in the county is the Renaissance Indianapolis North Hotel in Carmel. That facility has 263 rooms attached to 14,000 square feet of conference space. The Noblesville facility also would be larger than the Ritz Charles, long considered the most prominent venue in the county. The Ritz Charles has 15,000 square feet of space but doesn't have an attached hotel.
The Indianapolis Marriott East is the largest similar facility in Central Indiana with 75,000 square feet of space, including four ballrooms, an exhibition hall and 26 breakout rooms.
The specific design of the Noblesville facility has yet to be determined.
Hamilton County governments generally have not subsidized hotels with convention space. Carmel, for instance, didn't offer incentives to the Renaissance.
However, as governments look to fill niches in the market place, they appear more willing to deal. Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard has said the Carmel Redevelopment Commission is looking for a partner to build a boutique hotel near the Palladium. And Westfield is negotiating with a Jonathan Byrd's to build a hotel near Grand Park.
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In Nobllesville, city officials will use property taxes collected from the project through a tax increment financing district to repay the $6 million bond. Through the agreement, the developer will have to cover potential shortfalls if tax collections are not initially large enough to cover debt service.
Ditslear said he is confident Noblesville will benefit in the long term, through both property taxes collected and increased tourism spending.
"I don't think people really appreciate the need for space like that," he said.
Sun Development & Management Corp. manages hotels in 10 states, including six in Indiana.
Bharat Patel, the company's co-founder, chairman and chief executive officer, said bustling I-69 is the perfect fit for the project.
He said the Embassy Suites will be the first upscale hotel along the corridor with a full-service restaurant and bar. He plans to hire 50 workers, whose annual salaries will average $30,000, according to documents filed with the city.
The 15-acre development site also includes space for three non-fast-food restaurants along I-69 and two other small businesses facing local roads.
He believes the hotel will attract business travelers through the week and families on the weekend, in addition to convention traffic.
He initially had proposed a much smaller meeting space as part of the hotel but agreed to build the convention center after talking to Noblesville officials. Without significant incentives, the convention center would have been too expensive with too long of a time before he saw a return on investment, he said.
"It's something that will take time (to succeed)," he said. "It's going to be good for the area and will bring in a lot of people."
Call Star reporter Chris Sikich at (317) 444-6036. Follow him on Twitter: @ChrisSikich and at Facebook/chris.sikich.