The Judge Doyle Square Committee decided to recommend JDS Development to Madison’s City Council to aid in the redevelopment of the two-block area after a meeting Monday night.
JDS is comprised of the Hammes Co. of Madison and Majestic Realty Co. of Los Angeles. The company won out over the competing team led by the Journeyman Group of Austin, Texas. Both groups proposed plans for renovations on the area that is currently home to the Madison Municipal Building and the Government East Garage.
According to project director George Austin, the decision to go with JDS was unanimous. Austin said the committee felt JDS had the best combination of project features, approached the project with enthusiasm and was able to meet the city’s goals. They were also impressed with its plans for efficient use of taxpayer resources, he said.
“JDS had an excellent project plan, acceptable delivery methods and proposed a viable financial approach,” Austin said.
Ald. Scott Resnick, District 8, said the current proposal involves renovating the Madison Municipal Building into a hotel that would have approximately 308 rooms. The committee also intends to reconstruct the Government East Garage.
City Finance Director David Schmeidicke said JDS seeks to utilize the current convention center to its highest potential while growing the business of Monona Terrace. JDS plans to build the hotel close to the Monona Terrace Convention Center, which will allow the center to host larger events, he said.
The city would also like to stretch out the downtown business sector of Madison. One of the city’s biggest goals is to stimulate the area with more pedestrians, a city statement said. The statement said it wanted to draw more residents and visitors to Doty, Wilson and Pinckney Streets.
Schmeidicke was unable to give an estimated amount of how much this plan would cost to execute.
“All we have right now is what’s provided in the request for proposals,” Schmeidicke said.
He added that the proposal must first be forwarded to City Council for its approval before it proceeds any further.
The statement said if the proposal is accepted, the next step is to negotiate between JDS and the city staff. Once negotiations are worked out, the city will finally begin to plan the operation.
The current timeline predicts negotiations will be finished by April 2014. The plans for the reconstruction initially began in February 2013, and the city hopes to have the square completed by 2019.
