Aiken City Council approves Hotel Aiken redevelopment deal with Oliver Hospitality, council splits over parking costs

Aiken City Council voted Dec. 8 to approve a development and stabilization agreement with Oliver Hospitality Group aimed at renovating the long-vacant Hotel Aiken and building an associated parking deck, advancing a project council members said will drive downtown investment.

The ordinance authorizes the city manager to execute two agreements: one to stabilize and improve the hotel and surrounding properties and a second to provide for a developer-built parking deck. City staff told the council the city acquired the block for roughly $7.5 million and that an independent appraisal found the hotel’s value at $2.5 million. As part of the deal, the city will hold — and not immediately remit — up to $2,000,000 from so-called plutonium-settlement funds to be used for stabilization tasks within the building envelope and certain public-facing improvements.

Supporters at the public hearing described the project as a long-sought preservation and economic-development opportunity. “This is an investment in our community and in the continued vitality of our downtown,” Emily Sams, executive director of Aiken Downtown Development Association, said in support of the Oliver Hospitality proposal. Merchants and civic leaders said the hotel, combined with a structured parking solution, would bring visitors and support small businesses.

City staff and some council members acknowledged hard questions about public costs. The proposal calls for the city to fund a parking deck whose construction costs staff estimated at roughly $7.3 million (with soft costs bringing the total closer to $9 million). The developer would lease approximately 90 spaces at market rates; details on the final number of spaces and lease terms will be determined during implementation. Council members raised concerns that the city would pay developer fees, construction management fees and — as currently drafted — purchase land where a portion of the garage would sit.

Council debate emphasized two competing goals: stabilize a deteriorating historic property and limit public exposure to development costs. One counselor pressed for restructuring so the city would directly deliver the parking garage to avoid added development fees; others warned that changing terms could derail the deal and that prior delays have increased deterioration and carrying costs.

After extended public comment and council discussion, the ordinance passed; the roll call recorded a single dissent from Councilman Messina. Immediately after the vote, Oliver Group representative Craig Bradford addressed the chamber, thanking the city for its trust and saying the developer would work to honor the community’s expectations.

Next steps: the city will finalize contractual language and proceed with the stabilization work identified in the development agreement; details on construction timelines, exact parking counts, lease rates and disbursement milestones were not finalized at the meeting and were described as subject to the executed agreements.