Hotels In Carolina|"New Hotel Coming To Syracuse Inner Harbor"

Source             :    syracuse.com
Category        :    Hotels In Carolina
By                  :    Tim Knauss
Posted By     :    Hotels Carolina Beach NC

Hotels In Carolina

Andrew Cuomo visited Syracuse today to announce plans for a 130-room hotel at the Inner Harbor, the first new building in what is expected to be a $350 million development of the waterfront along the former state Barge Canal. "Today is a new era for Syracuse,'' Cuomo said. Starwood Hotels and Resorts, the owner of Sheraton and other hotel brands, plans to establish an Aloft Hotel at the southern edge of the Inner Harbor. Aloft, a brand Starwood introduced two years ago, aims for a hip, urban ambience and moderate room rates designed to appeal to young adults. The $18 million hotel would be the first step in a plan by COR Development Co., of Fayetteville, to develop 32 acres of former state lands around the harbor. COR Inner Harbor, an affiliated company, plans to build a mix of commercial buildings, townhouses and apartments, a community boathouse and other structures. After trying for decades to get the area developed, Syracuse officials in 2012 picked COR to develop the area after reviewing three competing proposals. COR has already cleared 18 acres along the western shore and removed more than 100,000 cubic yards of contaminated dirt.

COR's 10-year project has been picked to receive $4.5 million in state assistance to help with environmental remediation and infrastructure development. The company has applied for an additional $1.5 million to help relocate the historic freight house, remove three buildings and construct two mixed-use buildings.The hotel will be developed with all private money, said John Salvatore, senior director of development for Starwood Hotels. Construction is scheduled to begin in March or April of 2014, and Starwood plans to open the hotel about 12 months later. COR President Steve Aiello said the hotel will be financed with a combination of commercial loans and private equity. COR will own the hotel as a franchisee and hire a Starwood-approved management company. Aiello said COR has not assessed whether the project will require property tax relief from the city, in the form of a payment in lieu of taxes. "It's hard to say at this point,'' he said. Starwood has opened dozens of Aloft hotels around the world. In Upstate New York, the only other Aloft under development is at the Buffalo airport, scheduled to open in May 2014, according to the company web site.

"We want our young people to see us building, see the future here," Cuomo said at a press conference at the harbor. Starwood is "coming into Syracuse in the Inner Harbor. That's a vote of confidence. . . . They are betting on our future," the governor said. Starwood also operates the University Sheraton in Syracuse. The company's other hotel brands include Westin, St. Regis, Le Meridien, Element, Four Points and The Luxury Collection.

Source:syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/cuomo_new_hotel_coming_to_syracuse_inner_harbor.html