Salina City Commissioners are comfortable with a developer moving forward on a project that includes a new hotel and public parking garage in Downtown Salina.

During a study session Monday afternoon, Guy Walker, representing Lighthouse Properties, discussed a planned Springhill Suites by Marriott Hotel and accompanying parking garage in the 200 block of S 7th Street.

The project would be located on S 7th Street where a public parking lot already exists. Lighthouse is requesting transfer of ownership of the parking lot, which stretches from Walnut Street South for almost a full city block.

The hotel would be 80 rooms, and generally cost $20 to $30 dollars a night less than the nearby Homewood Suites, which Lighthouse also owns. Along with the guest rooms it would have a pool area, fitness center, and one meeting room. It would not have a restaurant.

For an 80 room hotel, generally about 90 parking spots are required The current public parking lot has 155 spaces. The parking garage, which would be open to the public at no cost, would have 389 parking spots, a net gain of 144 spots. It would have parking on four floors and its roof. The City of Salina would take on the long term responsibility for maintaining the parking garage.

The project would be funded via “growth tax dollars”, using Tax Increment Financing (TIF), Community Improvement District (CID) dollars, and sales tax and transient guest (TGT) funds generated once the hotel opens. The project is in the STAR Bond District, so that funding could also potentially be utilized. It would be nearly entirely funded by sales tax dollars generated in the area of the hotel. No property tax increase would be considered as part of the funding mechanism.

Walker indicated the parking garage could be built within 6 to 8 months. Lighthouse has a franchise agreement in place with Marriott which is fairly flexible, but does call for construction on the hotel to begin within two years.

Salina City Manager Jacob Wood said some of the downtown districts and boundaries would need to be amended / created for funding. City commissioners gave him approval to proceed.