The Hammes Company — developer for the Edgewater Hotel — announced Monday it would explore other design ideas for the hotel redevelopment project before pursing approvals from various city committees.
The developer decided to take another look at its designs after meeting with the Mansion Hill Steering Committee of Capital Neighborhood, Inc. and Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, over the weekend. According to a statement, the Hammes Company will explore creative solutions to address the concerns of this committee, as well as other concerns the company has heard.
“I consider the meeting to be quite successful if for no other reason that we all met face to face; it’s long overdue,” Verveer said.
The Steering Committee has been an outspoken opponent of the current proposal for the Edgewater Hotel, critiquing the proposal as jeopardizing the aesthetic value of the Mansion Hill Historic District with its size and high-rise tower, among other concerns regarding the project.
“I am committed to spending time in the weeks ahead working with the city, our supporters, the CNI Steering Committee and others in the neighborhood who are interested in exploring these ideas,” Hammes Company President Robert Dunn said in the statement.
Dunn added he looked forward to working with those groups toward a plan which is favorable for all parties.
Verveer said he thinks the Hammes Company realized the project was on a collision course, citing the numerous “fairly brutal” meetings in which the public voiced many conflicting opinions of the project.
“I welcome the timeout Hammes Company is taking,” Verveer said.
The Hammes Company was scheduled to come before the Landmarks Commission Monday and the Urban Design Commission Wednesday, but Hammes Company has withdrawn from these meetings.
Verveer also said he thinks Hammes Company realized there was a better way to proceed, adding it would go “smoother” for the company at City Hall if the neighborhood was behind them.
The Edgewater Hotel falls within District 2, represented by Ald. Bridget Maniaci, who said she was not at all surprised by the decision of the Hammes Company to take some time to draw up new plans.
“My sense is that it is all part of the process,” Maniaci said, adding that it is common for a proposal to be changed after the first rounds of exposure to city committees.
Maniaci also said there has not been a significant shift for either support or opposition to the project in recent time.
“I think the general consensus is that a lot of people want to see something done with the site,” Maniaci said.
The turning point will be when the Hammes Company comes back with a new design and another round of city meetings.
Verveer said large neighborhood meetings about the proposal are important and one or two more of them need to happen.
