Caldwell council approves letter of intent for hotel at event center site over resident objections

The Caldwell City Council on Dec. 2 approved a nonbinding letter of intent (LOI) with KSA Investments and Faber Construction to advance a hotel concept on city-owned land next to the Caldwell Event Center, voting 4–2 after extended public comment and council discussion.

Council action followed roughly two hours of public testimony from more than two dozen speakers, many of them parents and youth program leaders who said the dirt lot proposed for the hotel is used year-round for fair and rodeo activities and is critical for 4‑H/FFA participants to care for livestock and equipment. Opponents warned the site lacks visibility for sustained commercial tenants and that a hotel lease would effectively tie up a large, public parcel for decades.

Why it matters: Supporters, including the city’s economic development director and the hotel developer, said the project would add rooms that regional businesses and College of Idaho visiting teams need, supply more parking stalls than the property currently provides and generate new lodging tax revenue that can benefit tourism grants. Opponents said the proposal risks displacing youth and agricultural uses, reduces long-term public control of a municipal asset, and would not guarantee the commercial activity the city wants along U.S. 20/26 and 21st Avenue.

What council approved: The LOI approved by council is nonbinding and would allow the developer and city staff to draft a development agreement with detailed terms. The developer team told the council they plan 112 hotel rooms, about 198 parking stalls (86 above code compared with a typical hotel requirement) and 23 trailer stalls to support rodeo/fair operations. During the meeting the developer said it had received preliminary franchise approval from Marriott for the concept.

Stakeholder concerns and developer response: Parents, youth exhibitors and representatives of the Canyon County Fair and Caldwell Night Rodeo urged the council to preserve on-site trailer and equipment parking used throughout the year. “Having to bring equipment and livestock from across the road or train tracks just isn’t realistic,” said Abigail Johansson, a student exhibitor who urged councilors to reject the proposal at this site. Developer representatives and city staff said they’d studied several mitigation measures — extending nearby parking lots, improving the barn area and providing shuttle service — and that the hotel would include dedicated trailer stalls and on-site landscaping to reduce conflicts.

Council debate: Councilors pressed repeatedly for specific commitments from the developer and the three main stakeholders — the fair, the rodeo and the College of Idaho. Some councilors sought an RFP process to invite competing bidders for the city parcel; others pointed to the developer’s investment and the project’s higher parking counts as reasons to proceed. Several council members asked whether commitments from the fairboard and college were formal; staff said the rodeo board had approved a letter provided to the city, and the College of Idaho’s VP of athletics had provided a letter of support representing athletics-related uses.

Next steps and limits: Because the LOI is nonbinding, the city has not conveyed an ownership interest or executed a lease. If the city and developer move forward, they will negotiate a development agreement and (if necessary) a land swap appraisal before committing to sale or long-term lease. City staff said the LOI would let both sides proceed with due diligence, including an appraisal and traffic and parking planning, and that formal construction would not begin until required permits, studies and agreements were complete.

Who said what: Steve Jenkins, Caldwell’s economic development director, described the council’s planning goals and the developer’s parking proposals. Kate Atkinson of KSA Investments told councilors, “Today, we actually did get approval from Marriott,” indicating franchise-level interest. Residents such as Amity Wilson and Cassandra Crowell urged the council to preserve the lot for youth programs and community uses. Councilors split along lines of process and precaution; several said they wanted more formal commitments from the stakeholders and detailed parking and traffic plans before a development agreement was finalized.

Bottom line: The LOI moves the hotel concept forward to the development-agreement stage but does not transfer property or create a legally binding obligation. The nonbinding vote permits staff and the developer to negotiate terms; opponents plan to press for stronger, written protections for fair and rodeo uses, parking and youth access during subsequent steps.