Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Economic Development topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Developers pitch $90M historic Herring Hotel renovation; city staff outline incentives pipeline
Summary
Developers presented plans to convert the vacant Herring Hotel into a ~226‑room, full‑service boutique hotel with rooftop amenities and meeting space; the city and state incentive package under discussion would be performance‑based and return to council for final approvals in late October.
Developers and architects told the Amarillo City Council on Oct. 14 that a proposed adaptive reuse of the historic Herring Hotel could cost roughly $90 million to $100 million and generate more than 200 hotel rooms, event space and rooftop amenities intended to catalyze downtown revitalization.
John Campo of Campo Architecture and developer Todd Harmon walked council through decades of comparable historic rehab projects and said the Herring site is well suited for a soft‑brand, full‑service boutique hotel with restored ballrooms and a rooftop gathering space. The team proposed a performance‑based incentive package that includes a city lease/ownership mechanism to qualify for state hotel and sales tax rebates, a local occupancy tax rebate structure, and a Tiers (TIRZ) participation that would reimburse facade and public‑realm improvements upon completion.
Why it matters: The plan would rehabilitate a long‑vacant landmark and is projected to create full‑time jobs and generate additional hotel and sales tax revenue downtown. Developers said private financing, historic tax credits and public incentives are part of the funding stack.
Incentive outline: Economic‑development staff detailed a reduced, performance‑based package that would seek state hot‑tax and sales‑tax rebates (100% for a defined period if the city partners via lease ownership during the incentive term) and local rebates through the downtown Tiers zone tied to construction milestones and preserved historic fabric. No direct cash up front was anticipated beyond study costs; most rebates would be performance‑based and reimbursed after completion.
Timeline and next steps: Staff noted pending Tiers and council votes on Oct. 22–28 to move developer agreements forward and said due diligence will continue on financing and ownership/leaseback mechanisms. The council asked for additional detail on environmental and cost contingencies and for guaranteed milestone dates in any incentive contract.
Takeaway: The presentation framed the Herring conversion as a catalytic downtown project but emphasized that public incentives will be structured to pay only once measurable, documented economic and preservation milestones are achieved.
