New hotel construction set for spring
The newest, major economic investment in the City of Crete will begin to take shape later this spring as developers received approval on a final piece of a redevelopment plan to build a Fairfield Inn & Suites just off the East Highway 33/103 corridor.
Crete Lodging LLC, part of Anant Enterprises, an Omaha-based group with hotel projects in Nebraska and Kansas, is building the 80-room, 4 story project planned for the area behind the former Hillside Auto dealership. Attorney Tom Huston of Cline Williams, who helped guide a tax increment financing process for the City, said Anant partners Kirt Trivedi and Dr. Deepak Gangahar plan to break ground in April or May.
A development agreement was first approved in May of 2016 and amended twice, the second of which was on the agenda of Tuesday’s (March 20) regular City Council meeting. The council convened as the Community Development Agency to vote on the amendment, which updated the project to an 80-room facility and increased the tax increment financing (TIF) amount from $1,400,000 to $1,585,000. The total cost of the project is estimated at $7.4 million and is expected to take 11 months to complete.
When a redevelopment project involves TIF, a base valuation is established for the project and any increase in property tax revenues as a result of development for that specific property are diverted and in Crete’s case, the period is 15 years. Those funds can be redirected towards a number of eligible uses including site preparation, infrastructure needs, landscaping, and facade improvements. TIF programs are designed to promote redevelopment to blighted, underdeveloped or underutilized areas.
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