Good afternoon,
I don’t like the location of the proposed hotel on Main Street that was recently approved by the Newark City Council.
The site lands squarely in my favorite parking area that now offers easy access across Main Street. I also question what it will do to the character of downtown, with its ungainly configuration that seems to loom over the historic building in the front.
But in the whole scheme of things, my views or the views of residents don’t matter.
In covering city government off and on over the decades, I have learned that residents haven’t come to grips with the fact that simply showing up at a meeting will not stop a development that fits in with zoning and planning requirements.
Making an arbitrary vote against a project is likely to trigger a lawsuit that will lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal costs that will be borne by taxpayers.
To some extent, the current plan is at fault.
There was a time when a hotel was widely supported as a way to bring business to downtown.
But sentiments changed as buildings were razed and converted to retail and student housing. Meanwhile, the City Council dithered over parking.
Student housing giant Lang Development did not help the process. A good landlord in my personal experience, Lang erred in failing to hold an informal public meeting to discuss the plan.
Residents who had valid objections and perhaps good ideas to improve the proposal felt they were ignored.
With that said, one would guess that many opponents will be the first to head to the grand opening of the hotel or spend some time on the rooftop lounge if open to the public.
Such is the nature of not in my backyard and not in my downtown disputes.
The financing and feasibility issues that derailed other hotel proposals in the past may not be a problem this time around. Based on continuing growth at the University of Delaware and the market for hotel lending, there is every reason to believe the project will move forward.
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