Hotel Indigo – Warehouse District
InterContinental Hotels Group, the world’s largest hotel operator, has proposed a new boutique-style hotel for the Warehouse District.
The 107-room Hotel Indigo would sit on nearly an acre of footage between Hall and Garland streets and Grandview Parkway. The four-story building would feature a unique warehouse-style design to match the surrounding neighborhood and would include amenities such as an indoor pool and spa, lounge, retail space, 75 underground parking spaces and a plaza facing Garland Street. Estimated development costs for the project are $10-$15 million.
Developers have indicated the design and theme of the hotel will be fitting to downtown – smaller rooms, upscale atmosphere and high customer service. They hope to capitalize on city plans to build an underground pedestrian tunnel that will link the Warehouse District with West Grand Traverse Bay (see below). The proposed hotel will go before the City Commission for review on June 8.
The River Traverse City – Clinch Park
The River in Glen Arbor is expanding to a new location – downtown Traverse City.
Mike and Becky Sutherland, owners of the popular canoe and kayak rental shop in Glen Arbor, received approval from the City Commission May 14 to open The River Traverse City in the Clinch Park concessions stand. The business will offer bike, canoe and kayak rentals, beach items and snacks. Operations are expected to begin Memorial Weekend.
The arrangement is a win-win for downtown – not only will residents and visitors gain access to an expanded lineup of amenities and rental services, the city will also receive 15% of all proceeds in exchange for use of the space to put toward bayfront improvements and other city services.
Lake Michigan Waterfront Improvements – Downtown
Planned improvements to land along West Grand Traverse Bay, which originated several years ago in a community-wide input session entitled “Your Bay, Your Say,” are reaching the final stages of review and could be implemented as soon as next year. The city has hired engineering firm URS Inc. to gather public input on proposed designs and to finalize a comprehensive redesign plan. Commissioners and various other government boards are expected to approve a final plan by mid-June, at which point the city will intensify efforts to secure state, federal and private foundation grants for the improvements. A price tag for the plan hasn’t been released, but officials have called it a “multi-million dollar” project.
Mayor Chris Bzdok recently outlined the initial design concepts for several major waterfront areas on his community website PlanForTC.com. They include:
West End (Division west to M-72) – Keep natural beach (remove invasive plants), restore sandy beach across from Elmwood and add enhanced pedestrian crossing, improve dirt trail north of Grandview Parkway through a combination of TART trail and boardwalk.
Former Power Plant/Smith Barney Building – Add playground structure and restroom/changing area near old Smith Barney parking lot, keep power plant property open for festivals and outdoor sports, flood recessed area in winter to create outdoor ice skating rink.
Former Zoo Property/Clinch Park – Move Con Foster entrance to rear (north side) of building, create winding creek through property utilizing artesian spring, add children’s play area, add splash park, add handicap-accessible ramp to beach and water areas, add concession areas on north side of property.
Holiday Inn Area – Add fishing pier on the breakwall at the Boardman River, reorient parking lot to provide more green park and picnic space alone the water to the east of the hotel.
Grandview Parkway – Reduce height of light poles, add trees to the median west of Division, enhance crosswalks, create underground pedestrian tunnel from Warehouse District to West Grand Traverse Bay.