Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.

My name is Dr.

Ignacio Nunez.

I serve as chair of the Planning and Zoning Commission of the City of Arlington.

I hereby call this regularly noticed meeting of the City of Arlington's Planning and Zoning Commission regular session to order for August 20th, 2025.

This time I'll ask our administrator to read the speaker guidelines and general decorum for tonight's meeting.

Yes, of the citizens and other visitors in attendance and assist in persevering the order and decorum of this meeting and to provide for attendance and participation in the meeting without fear of intimidation, threats, or hostility.

Any person making personal profane hostel, slanderous or threatening remarks who uses vulgar or obscene language, who engages in any other actions that disturb or are calculated to disturb the meeting or who become disruptive while addressing the planning and zoning commissioners or while attending the planning and zoning meeting may be removed from the council chambers.

All speakers shall address the commissioners and not the audience or city staffers should not call it individually, named members of city staff for the public.

For speakers tonight, when your name is called, please come to the microphone at the podium and state your name and city of residence for the record.

The applicant will be asked to speak first and will be given ten minutes to make a presentation.

Speakers in support or opposition of the item will be given five minutes each to make their statements.

If there are many speakers for an item, each speaker will be given three minutes to make their statements.

The applicant will then be given five minutes for any rebuttal.

If multiple speakers plan to provide the same or some similar comments, those speakers may, if they so desire, designate one or more individuals to provide public comment on behalf of the group.

A bell will signal the end of each speaker's time.

In consideration of the speakers, please conclude your comments promptly when you hear the bell.

We ask that you address your comments to the planning and zoning commissioners.

Thank you.

A copy of the minutes of our August 6th, 2025 regular session agenda were disseminated amongst all the commissioners.

Are there any changes?

Saying none, I have a motion to approve by Commissioner Ware and a and a second by Commissioner Maddox.

Please cast your vote.

Motion passes unanimously.

Tonight we have one zoning case.

It is zoning case SUP 25-3 entitled Element Hotel.

This is an application for approval of a specific use permit for an upscale hotel on property zoned airport overlay community commercial on approximately uh 2.033 acres.

At this time, I call on staff to present its report on zoning case SUP 25 30.

Chair Commissioners for the record, Clifford Goldstone, Principal Planner, Planning and Development Services.

Again, we have for you the Element Hotel, SUP 25-3.

Uh, the subject site is approximately 2.033 acres, addressed at 4560 Wax Wing Drive, currently zone airport overlay community commercial, with a request for a specific use permit for an upscale hotel.

And this is a site uh location map located uh just uh north of East Barn Road and west of Wax Wing Drive.

This is just a a little bit of development uh history in the area, as you can see uh with proximity to the airport.

Uh there's been a lot of development um recently uh in this area, and this would just add continually add to that.

These are site photos, again, the first uh photo looking uh west towards uh uh the uh South Collins Street that uh uh that are restaurants, uh commercial retail that uh but South Collins.

You have two hotels to the north, the home suites and the um Hampton Inn and Suites.

You have residential, uh single family residential to the south, and the U.S.

postal facility to the east.

This per the unified development code.

This just advises of the new uh classifications for hotels.

Again, this one will be an upscale hotel.

And this uh hotel, it will again be an upscale hotel consisting of 72,305 square feet.

It will be five stories, consists of uh 60 percent of the rooms will be suites.

All rooms will be accessed uh via an uh interior hallway.

Uh average room size being 386 square feet with the smallest room size being 350 square feet, uh will consist of uh 3,000 square foot lobby area, 661 square foot fitness center, guest laundry area, breakfast area, restore area, and outdoor seating and lounging with uh fire pits, grills, and the pool.

And this is the site layout, it's accessible.

Uh it's gonna be mainly accessible.

Direct access will be provided here via existing access easement, 25-foot wide access easement, and also with the subject site, wax wing extends up to the I-20 service road, and that second entrance off that access easement extends to the I-20 service road as well.

And these are hotels within the one mile radius.

There are five that are existing.

Uh, there was one that was approved that is currently uh under review, hasn't been constructed yet, and including this element hotel, there will be a total, uh, including all those rooms once constructed, will be a total of 830 rooms within a one-mile radius of the area.

Now there's an existing uh 589 rooms with just those open.

And this this is just another comparison of the this proposed hotel with the other hotels uh within that area.

Again, they're all roughly all of them are very comparable.

These are the elevations, again, it'll be a five-story structure, it's gonna consist of brick, um, uh stucco, different color variations, and a lookupon metal material.

And this is just the first floor layout again, showing both um the majority of the amenities will be on the first floor again.

You have inside you're gonna have the lounging area, the meeting space, a food prep breakfast area, administrative offices, fitness center, and in the rear of the site, of course, you're gonna have the pool, the large lounging area.

And these are just floor layouts uh for the second through the fifth floors.

All floors, the second floor will consist of 23 rooms, the third, uh fourth, and fifth would all have 26 rooms.

This is a hotel entry area.

They're proposing again the port of cachet here and the sculpture here, and again, there will be additional uh landscaping in the front of the hotel as well.

This is just out example, the outdoor pool area with uh the lounging area, the grills, fire pits.

And the site does meet all uh minimum landscape requirements.

In fact, it actually exceeds the landscape requirements along uh Waxwing and Bardon Road, East Barton Road.

And again, this uh site is located within a regional activity center, uh which specializes in providing opportunities to create special places, including residential retail offices, research, development facilities.

Um this promotes the land use patterns for reflecting a mix of integrated community uses, and this plan uh development proposal is a general conformance with the city's comprehensive plan.

If the commission is uh inclined to approve the request, staff has the following recommendations that additional glazing and canopies uh or awings be provided along the east elevation to give more of a storefront appearance along Waxwing Drive, and consideration be given to placing an emphasis on creating a more visually appealing corner treatment, uh maybe along the vertical uh building element on the south elevation facing South Bardin Road.

Again, you did you should have received in the packet we did receive uh uh one letter uh per the applicant submitted with the um application for uh letter of support also as provided in the work session.

There was additional uh letter of support that we received today, uh not included in the packet that was provided.

And the applicant is Graham Associates represented by Josh Steeger.

The owners are DPG partners represented by Mike Dowerty, and Conrill, represented by Gerald Alley.

Staff is available for any questions.

Thank you very much, uh Clifton.

We did discuss this at length upstairs, but do any of the commissioners have questions at this time of our staff?

We may call upon you again, sir.

This uh please go ahead, Commissioner Carter.

Is a uh traffic study required for this development?

No, it's not uh engineering, didn't didn't mention anything needed.

Basically, it's just an SUP, so it doesn't really change the land uses, so it's not gonna generate.

I think it was included in the staff report, doesn't generate a significant amount of traffic enough to warrant that.

Okay, thank you.

Sure.

Go ahead.

So you you may not know this, maybe you can just guess this, but I I think you this location is about 15, 20 minutes to the entertainment district.

About how many miles is it from the entertainment district?

Is it I always can't guess things right?

Right.

Okay, I'll need to have a lot of things.

I'll follow up with that later.

Thank you.

All right, very good.

So at this time, I'm going to open the public hearing and ask for the first speaker to come up.

Please remember if you are a speaker, please state your name and the city of your residence, not your address, because our rules have been changed.

Uh after which we may have some questions.

And I have several cards, sir.

If you could identify yourself.

My name is Gerald Alley.

Okay.

I'm a resident of Arletton, 606 Local A Court.

Justice City is all we care about, sir.

Okay.

All right.

Thank you, Gerald.

Please go ahead.

First of all, I'd like to thank the commission, the chair for reviewing this opportunity.

And I come with great pride to make this presentation because this is a continuation of our commitment and stakeholders in Arletton.

Give you a little bit of background about who I am and why we came with this project.

First of all, I've been a resident of Arlington for 45 years.

And during that time, I've had a business operated in Arlington.

We employ approximately 80 employees out of Arletton in our organization.

We work all over the country, but Arletton is our home.

For the last 15 years, I served as past on the Arlington Convention Visit Bureau and served as chairman for four years and immediate past chairman for four years, part of the executive team.

So part of my mantra is understanding how we bring hospitality, entertainment, and bringing that to have stakeholders in the process.

A little further background on that.

Back early in the early 2005-6, when the Cowboys came to town, there was no hotels.

And that was done particularly after we acquired the property that went all the way to the corner of Ballpark Way.

And from that process, we have tried to continue not only to do business, but also do good while we're doing business.

And from that, we did the Hilton Garden Hotel, and that hotel became the number one ranking hotel in the Hilton Garden system as a new hotel.

And we the biggest criticism we had, we built better product than the standard.

And that's the key.

And I always said when Hilton would say, Well, you're putting a little too much in it, we say, well, we're concerned about the other brands, the other hotels, but we're most concerned about making this a flagship.

So our legacy to invest in Arletton is key.

The other part is that as part of bringing the entertainment district has served in that executive committee to make sure that Lowe's and and Courtish and everyone was part of that.

I spoke in behalf of that.

And from that I've been committed to grow the entertainment district.

But as I looked at it, it's not an Arletton shouldn't be just one entertainment district.

It should be all over the city.

And one of the parts that I'm very closely attached with, I'm a member of Cornerstone Baptist Church.

I built a church, every church in that area that it grew from.

I was part of the acquisition, the 28 acres.

It is down on the intersection of Matt Lock and Kim Bowie.

And I'm proud to say when you passed commissioners, I discussed it in detail, and also the senior pastor and their leadership team.

And we served a great purpose in that.

Even when COVID happened, we were the co-owners, and I'm let our partners speak in a few minutes that provided housing for those people that couldn't get around.

So I think first of all, this is not just a project.

This is a continuation of our commitment to serve the citizens of Arletton.

The next thing I want to say, let me get the clicker going.

These are some of the projects.

Now I talked about these on each one of these project lows.

We served in a primary role in billing that.

We continued.

And it was so much committed to the community.

We built our corporate office right beside it.

It's that sort of funky black building right there on Lamar.

That's right there.

That's our project.

So this is our home.

So we look at Arletton as a holistic approach to serve the entire community.

And we're proud to say our relationship comes not only from our projects and doing the bigger projects, but also that.

Now let me talk a little bit about why DPG and Conreel team together on this.

It opened on time, it completed on time, it's rail parts been good.

And not only that, our partner's going to talk about their legacy in Arlington.

And I believe most important is not just the brick and the mortar is who you associate with.

And I rarely do projects with people I don't know, but first of all, it comes with the character, the people you're dealing with and doing what they say they're gonna do.

So we're very proud of this product.

So in that, if you look at the corners of the Hampton Suite was the first project of those hotels, and a lot of part, a lot of people said, Why are you the only ones there?

And Mike is going to talk about we came before the mall was there, we came before all the other activities, and they said, I don't believe our hotel work.

Since then, they did a number of developments around it, including the iCenter, including the other aspects around that.

Now we continued on to do the Homewood Suite on the four left corner, and that became a great product to service the need not only for uh Arlington, but also around the soccer fields and the sports fields, because it's a different market from the Lowe's to South Arlington, and it has a lot more community base.

So these uh full service uh accommodation hotels serve a good purpose to bring families together and keep Arlington balanced between just travelers coming through to have friends and associations with that.

Now, one of the things that we want to talk briefly about in this project, I'm gonna turn it over to Mike.

But we started with the Homewood Suite, we became partners in that, and as we let it stabilize and operate, we built the product on time, on schedule, on budget, quality product, and then we came back and said, Well, you know, hotels operate like a cluster.

You gotta have enough bandwidth to serve the citizens.

As far as connections of that, I also serve on the AD uh economic development corporation, which we just approved eSpace, and talking with Trey City Manager, before we started this process, we visited with him, and we asked what would be beneficial to the airport needs.

And we talked about what kind of product what it was.

So we had several conversations with the city manager, Gens and the whole team, and we also talked to the people at the church, which would say center part of the community.

I think the the thing that we want to make sure we do that we're there to service their residents, their families, their guests to come in to serve those communities.

So we looked at that, and we believe this is a great addition, and I heard it mentioned earlier that as eSpace gets going, if it's approved by city council, and hopefully it will be, this is gonna require 400 new employees, high paying professionals to come in all across the world.

They're gonna need a place to stay a long-term stay.

So this is designed to support that, and hopefully, when they stay longer, they become citizens residents in the community because that's where the development is going.

And one of the things we found out about airports, you gotta support them to support their staff to come in.

So I believe this aligns with the airport goal in which the city and Arlington Economic Development invested over 110 million dollars in this project.

This is a supporting arm to support the success of the airport.

And I like to now turn it over to Mike Dottery, who is our managing partner.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Mr.

Dharty, just for your name and city, please.

Sure.

Hello.

Uh my name is Mike Doherty.

I'm from Prosper, Texas, uh, CEO of DPG Partners.

I did, as Gerald was talking there, just to clarify on there, uh, Gerald worked on Conrio with the two projects on the top, did some construction management, uh, really some neat work.

Gerald and I met when he was building the Hilton Garden Inn, we had bought the franchise to build the Hampton Inn and Suites, which is adjacent to the Element Hotel.

Uh we bought that property in 2005.

Didn't dawn on me until yesterday, that had been over 20 years since my first visit to P and Z in Arlington.

And uh and and that's correct.

We had the same question at P and Z.

How will you know is there there's no need for hotel support down there?

We don't need it, they're not doing well.

Well, again, the hotel we built in South Arlington was the uh it hadn't been a hotel built since 97, and this one opened up in 2006, I believe it was.

Uh it was also a very successful hotel.

And then we moved on, and uh uh when Gerald was building the garden inn, we were keeping track of each other and competing with each other, so we were friends.

Uh but then we partnered on the Homewood Suites, uh, built that and opened in 2016.

Uh that whole corner at uh Bardon up to I-20 service road along Wax Wing, and then uh over to the uh uh to the Quick Trip right before the uh fairfield, that was our property.

We purchased 13 acres at that time.

Um in addition to the hotels, we also helped develop the uh Davy Federal Credit Union.

Uh they service the area in there.

Uh and then there was also Riot iClinic, uh, which we also helped develop on our property there for an iClinic in the neighborhood.

So we have tried to add some things that made sense.

We before we purchased the property, uh Gerald's right, a lot of stuff hadn't happened in Arlington yet.

And when we did our feasibility study and some friends that have hotels, they said, man, South Arlington, it doesn't, it doesn't look good.

And we believe the same thing as Gerald, we have a kindred spirit in this.

If you build something very nice and take care of people, uh you'll be successful.

Uh that Homewood Suites is currently the number two, well, back up for 2004, I think 05, it's gotten it's maybe getting beat now by the new lows.

But it was the number two performing hotel.

I I brought some stats because I know there's quite a bit of questions about occupancy.

And so this is the 2024 uh statistics for every hotel in Arlington.

Um, and I can jump to that real quick, but I was just gonna do two things.

Uh we can talk about occupancy, and then I was also going to uh talk about why element hotel, but I think occupancy matters for that and how the hotels perform.

And then I was gonna just show some interior pictures and then answer any questions.

But what this is this is uh two pages from what's called the fact book from Source Strategy.

Source Strategies takes the uh hotel revenue receipts that are uh collected by the comp troller every month and then publishes this book every month.

It comes out and explains how hotels are performing.

And just these two pages are Arlington.

And if you look at it, uh going across the top, it talks about the number of rooms, the total revenue, and then it talks about the ADR of we were discussing rates that hotels are charging, and then it talks about occupancy percentage, and then it talks about revars, which rev par is a common term in the hotel business, which is occupancy percent times the average daily rate.

So if you have a 70% occupied hotel and a hundred dollar average daily rate, you have a 70 rev par.

That's the most critical number for a hotel year.

What are you yielding on that room?

So if you jump to the second page, I always like to begin with the end of mine, jump down to the bottom.

There's a question about occupancy, and this is broken out by zip code.

Um the very last line, there are 65 hotels in the city of Arlington.

Uh the occupancy in 2024 for the entire city of Occupy of Arlington was 63.3 percent.

If you go up one, the zip code right there is the zip code where we're proposing the element, which is 76018.

The occupancy at that zip code is the highest in Arlington.

It's consistently right there.

In 2023, it wasn't.

There was uh an in town suites and a microtell for some reason, had very high occupancy, but uh consistently it's the highest zip code in Arlington.

So the occupancy in uh is about it's indexing at about a 1.12 percent better than the entire city from an occupancy standpoint.

Then if you move over to the right, Gerald and I like to brag because we like to win when we build a hotel, we want it to be successful.

There's a thing on there that uh if you go across the homewood, which is a directly adjacent, it's the hotel in the corner, the RevPAR, which I mentioned is the critical number, and 2004, the RevPAR of the Homewood Suites, which is a Hilton extended stay uh hotel.

The Rev Par was 136.37 cents.

That's when I said it's the number two hotel in 2024 in the city of Arlington.

You can go up that column, go over to the next page, and you'll see the number one is under zip code 76011.

That's the live hotel by uh Lowe's.

Their Rev Par in 2024 was 226.51 cents.

So this is a great resource.

Uh Source Strategies has their data online.

You can purchase it or call me, I'd be happy to give you what I have, and and the owners of it are very good.

But Source Strategies also does feasibility studies and market studies.

They do a data collection of hotels, that's all they do, and then they do uh feasibility studies.

So to answer one question, then I'll move off of occupancy.

We took into we uh just go back on DPG.

I didn't introduce my team, but my partners.

Uh this is my father on the far left.

He will tell you he's my older brother, but don't let him lie to you.

But uh we own the company, DPG Partners.

Uh we've developed hotels since 2001, and we also develop office buildings in Austin and Houston.

Um and this is Josh Steiger with uh Graham and Associates, our civil engineer.

Um I was gonna say on last thing on on occupancy.

There was a question about a feasibility study.

Had we done a feasibility study, we absolutely do a feasibility study.

We did one in 2005 before we did our first hotel.

We did one again in 2015.

Uh it looks very good.

Um the uh our our feasibility study took into account all the hotels within the one mile area, which is incredibly critical report, and I'll tell you why we think that's a good area for hotels.

But we take in the whole I-20 corridor.

We believe that our customers, and we know it from experience, we operated hotels there for 15 years.

We were drawing business over those 15 years from Lockheed Martin from helicopter uh facility in Grand Prairie from a forklift operator that was over there, the church that wrote a letter to us.

They were a great customer of ours.

That's the reason they wrote a letter.

Uh, and so we drew from everything along the I-20 corridor.

I will point out that over the last since 2017, the city of Grand Prairie on their I-20 corridor, has developed seven upscale hotels.

The element is an upscale hotel.

The homewood is an upscale hotel, and the Hilton Garden Inn is an upscale hotel.

The home two and the Hampton and these others are are called upper mid-scale, and that's just a slightly lower price point, a few less amenities, and they're very good hotels.

We own a home too.

But for selection in Arlington, um, we'd own the land for a long time, and uh we were trying to figure out what to do and calling Gerald and discussing things.

We did meet with Tri Alverton, the city manager.

Uh met him 20 years ago.

He worked with us when he was not he was uh he was a different title back then, but 20 years ago.

But we met with him and discussed uh what the city needed.

We did not contact the airport about the market.

We were they were just one of our favorite customers for 15 years.

So I didn't need to call them.

I knew that we service them very well.

And what's convenient about this site on and off at I-20 and Collins is a it's a wonderful site for hotels.

Uh people fly in on their planes, they land uh there at the airport, they go to the cowboys games, they go to the cotton bowl, they go to the Arkansas game, you name it, and they come, they fly in and they like to.

Uh your time is up.

Okay.

All right.

I'll uh I can end or uh just a couple more points.

I can show you the pictures and wrap it up, answer questions.

I'll give you a little leeway.

Go ahead and finish.

Okay, thank you.

Um so it's an easy convenient, it takes us about three miles.

We to get to the uh to the star, or I'm sorry, to the uh uh uh stadium and the ballpark.

And so people love to land there and then come and go.

The other point that South Arlington is desperate for good quality upscale hotels, some good businesses and people that come here to do business, they don't necessarily want to stay in the entertainment district.

I'm a Rangers fan, I'm a seasoned ticket holder, I've been going for years.

I love it.

My wife, who's not a Rangers fan, she probably wouldn't love going there in and out constantly if it was a rank Yankees Rangers weekend or something.

So there's a there's a market that we serve, there's families that we serve, there's businesses that we serve in South Arlington.

So I'll uh I'll just jump here to my slides real quick and get off your stage.

Oh, whoops.

These are many uh Element Hotels and Upscale Hotel by Weston's designed by Weston, it's under the Marriott brand.

It won the uh uh JD Powers Award for upscale hotels for guests loyalty and service.

It's designed around a healthy lifestyle, which the outdoor part is really matters.

This is the inside of a hotel of an element.

This is typical, very modern.

We didn't show pictures of the inside and the submetal, so I wanted to give that.

The lobby opens up to a large glass area that looks out to the pool area.

And this was these pool pictures on the right were in your packet, but it brings an outdoor in living area.

These are guest rooms, they're very modern and and feel and very uh comfortable.

We do have some extended stay suites and we have regular suites.

Uh this is uh one bedroom suites with quartz tops.

Uh, and then we have what's called a common suite, a very large room for uh we have team meetings where we have people that have a family reunion.

We had a lot of that with the church where they would have events, and they said we need big space, and so it has this large common rooms that may connect with two or three other rooms.

These are the bathrooms are kind of spa-inspired, real modern and fresh and clean.

Um, this is the exterior, and with that, I appreciate the extra time.

I don't want to ramble on maybe directly more to your questions.

Okay, very good.

Thank you.

Uh is anyone else gonna speak or just be there to answer questions?

Okay, all right, very good.

Uh Commissioner Blake, go ahead and start.

Okay, a couple questions.

And one, you know, you keep seeing all these 69, 70 percent and things like that.

Why are y'all not shooting for a hundred percent occupancy?

Well, I uh I I would every day, I'd love to sometimes.

Now that said, uh the the hotel average in the state of Texas is 62 percent for all hotels.

The travel pattern of most hotels is uh Monday through Thursday, and then on the weekends it slows down, except for at the entertainment district, which is terrific, and so you've got these two that bounce out.

So it is it's just it's almost impossible to run full, and quite frankly, uh most people when they full, they're gonna raise the rate to 250 dollars a night or raise the price.

And so uh it also just wears out your property.

You know, it's like I have a friend who owns hotels, and he's like, Mike, if I go below, I don't want to be above 75 percent because it will wear out my hotel, and so we we're constantly booking groups, and it's just turnover.

It's like it's just kind of the natural state of hotels, about 75 percent is a good healthy hotel, or 60 60 percent is good as well, makes money, but so second question is and kind of following up on that how far you are from the entertainment district, which maybe you have those numbers, maybe you don't.

But do y'all expect to see a lot of entertainment district traffic coming through your hotels and these hotels that are in the South?

Yes, yes, sir.

We we do, and uh we have a we constantly shuttle up back and forth to ball games when the Super Bowl came, we dedicated rooms to it because they they wanted there.

We have teams that come in for for the big 12 meetings for different ones that say we'd like a quarter of your hotel, but they don't want to necessarily be in the entertainment district, or they're flying in, flying out, or they're coming from the south part of Texas, moving up from Abilene or somewhere to come to a game, and that's as far as they want to go, and they want to after the game, they may spend the night, go to the game, do a double header the next day they're out of there, and they head south to beat the traffic.

So thank you, Commissioner Maddox.

Thank you.

Um at your statistics that you just passed out, yes, sir.

I'm noticing in general a downward trend in occupancy rate.

Can you give me some idea of what's what's driving that?

Do you expect for it to continue?

And if it does continue, what would you do about it?

Well, uh I I would say this of about a one and a two-point change in that zip code is to me is not alarming.

That's there's fluctuations and there's reasons that groups come and go down in that South Arlington area.

One area, if you look at just the overall market drop from 68 to 63.

If you go to the first page, um the Lowe's Arlington Hotel added 888 rooms up in the north part, and it was also ramping.

So during that first year, the occupancy is much lower when you first open.

And so, I mean, you have some big weekends and big events, but it takes a while to build your business.

So I think the occupancy was like it looked at uh but they listed 55% occupancy at the Lowe's hotel when it first opened for 888 rooms, so that would skew down the percentage total somewhat that month, but I'll guarantee you they're not there now.

They've they've raised up since then.

So, but my question is I'm looking at percentage change from 23 to 24, and pretty much throughout your statistics, I'm looking at a decline in occupancy rates.

Not when they first start and ramping up to uh full operation.

I'm looking at a decline from uh in 24 from 23.

And again, my question is do we have an idea what's causing that?

Do we expect for it to continue?

And if it does, what would you do about it?

What would you do about it?

Yes, sir.

Uh what I would say is is the market grew by uh if you look at go to the far left two columns, the room revenues grew from 202 to 230 million dollars.

So the market went up over 10 percent.

So, yes, there was an occupancy slight decline in that period.

I think that will normal out as the lows occupancy increases because it is a large chunk.

Um I also would say if I go down that zip code, a 78, a 75, a 79, uh 59, a 65, a 66, 70, 70 percent occupancy, that's extremely healthy.

So I don't believe that there will be a decline.

Um I will say this and on our feasibility study.

The the past four-year average compounded growth rate of uh lodging demand grew 2.4 percent compounded per year.

So the growth is is coming over the past four years.

So I I don't have any and that's all he put on there in his study, but I don't have any reason to think it would decline.

We actually believe we're we're we've owned the land for 20 years.

We were patient, we weren't anxious to come in and do something, and we put our own money in this.

So we are very confident that the market's going to be solid.

I'll tell you that first.

Um we don't raise money, we we put our own in, so I'm at risk.

I'm in it with you.

Um what I would say is if you take a step back and you say e-space, what is going to be happening with there, what is happening with the Arlington uh business development piece that's coming down south there, uh we're bullish.

We came to Arlington before Highlands was here, before Ket Jerry announced we bought our property, so we're thrilled to be in Arlington.

We love being here for 20 years, and we've watched nothing but growth in the business economic area here.

So I I think I will what if it declines, here's my opinion.

And these aren't my stats, these are from them.

If it the occupancy declines, it's because they're going to Grand Prairie because they're building nicer new upscale hotels, and we haven't built them in the last 10 years in South Arlington.

That's my opinion.

Yes, sir.

Umiser um Greer.

Um you mentioned you you own the land for 20 years for this particular site you've owned.

Was it ever on the market or were you ever approached by a restaurant user or somebody else that would like to take advantage of being so close to all these hotels?

No, sir.

That that's a uh my dad and I started in the restaurant business in 1980.

I was his chief dishwasher at 11 years old, but so we we sought out restaurants very much so.

We before we bought the property, uh, we worked with a number of restaurant concepts, and then Arlington Highlands came in.

And all the air for restaurants sucked across the highway.

And so that was kind of hit us in our business plan a little bit, just to be honest with you, it was tough for that period.

Uh we couldn't get them on the north side facing the I-20.

If you look at where the site is on the same on Bardin Road is is not a high traffic where you're gonna land a uh a national restaurant there back there with that traffic.

And so this is a site that's behind the hotels, if you think about where the inner in relation to the interstate.

So we never had any ho restaurants, we didn't have much success with them on the front side of I-20 15-20 years ago.

Um, but no, sir, we did not talk to restaurants on the south side.

We did talk, we did have it uh listed on loop net and different times for sale.

You own it for a long time.

My my family says, what are you gonna do with that, Mike?

Right.

Okay, thank you.

Other questions, Commissioner Sumter.

Uh the adjacent hotels, uh and forgive me if I don't know this, are they all upper upscale categories as well?

No, sir.

The uh Hampton and Suites is an uh upper mid scale, the which is right below where we are in this chain scale range, and then the homewood suites is an upscale, which is the same as ours.

The home two that is proposed is below as uh upper mid scale.

And the aloft that was built across the um street there is an upscale hotel.

And so why did you choose upscale and not upper upscale?

What's what's the difference in is there a good reason to have a mixture of hotel types based on people flying in and going to events and well we were trying we have a small site, it's two acres, and we were trying to find the highest and best use that we could find for that property.

Um and so as you move up up the scale there, it would be very difficult to do a boutique hotel.

We just don't think the demand is there.

We think it needs to be backed by a uh major chain, and so our our prerequisite that it needed to be one of the two or three major chains, and Marriott and Hilton are the top two in our opinion.

And so the other point is if you look at what's performing really well, because we don't we must be successful, is the upscale hotel of Homewood next door being the number two hotel in Arlington, which we're proud of because we built uh it makes sense to be in that similar category and upscale.

We weren't interested in an upper mid scale or lower, and so in an upscale luxury would not fit on this site.

And so you own the home.

We sold it during 2020.

And just good timing for us, and then uh the uh it's a different owner out of Houston that owns it now, and he's does a very good job.

They have an excellent so we owned it for uh five years.

So we do not own that now, and we do not own the Hampton.

We built that in 2006, and but we're uh so we we keep them at least for seven, eight years is our goal, but you never know just timing in our business what may work out.

Okay.

Um we're the operator too, yes, sir.

You don't worry.

Last question is um we haven't really talked about it, but you you've read this two staff considerations.

Oh, the two staff considerations, yes, sir.

Yeah, what do you what's your opinion of those?

Uh yes, sir.

Um can we show the the front elevation?

Let me let me uh I've I don't know if you can I drive this, go back or that's my drawing.

Will it get back to staff's drawing?

Okay, can we pull up staff drawing of the front elevation?

I'm sorry, I didn't put the same slides up.

Um that front, there was a discussion about additional glazing on the front windows, and that picture's perfect, yes.

Um this is an if you look on the right side, that's the end of the hotel.

And it is a uh when one when we met with Trey Alverton, the city manager, he said, Hey, I I don't can you make it a rectangle or or a uh an L shape or something on it, and uh instead of just a straight uh rectangle box, which is what you know several other hotels are as well, and the Hampton is a rec is a straight rectangle box.

So on that far end on the right, you see a low window there on the right side corner, um right by the tree facing uh there's a tree right in front of you, and then on the on the edge facing the north, which is facing the Hampton, there's a large window.

That's a meeting room inside that corner, and so I'm not opposed at all.

I love the thought of more glazing on that meeting room for the first few feet.

But you can actually tell the screen and you can draw on the screen and draw on it.

Okay, my screen is okay, yeah, right here.

Okay, yeah, I see it.

I'm sorry.

You got it.

So that right here and this right here is a meeting room.

Uh we we got this note on Friday.

We have not reviewed it with Marriott, but I'm have no problem with making that corner more window and more glazing on that corner on both sides, right where that meets, because that's a meeting room intended in there.

As you move to the left, there's an employee break room, and then there's luggage storage, and so I need to be careful to make sure that the glass isn't showing something that's unattractive right in there.

But on that hard corner, I have no problem with adding some glazing on that window.

Now it needs to go to Marriott, they review everything we do, um, but we'll just tell them the city has told us this is what needs to be done.

So in the uh south elevation as well.

Okay, on the south elevation, is it possible to there we go?

Can you go back to the uh site plan that shows Bardon Road too on that south elevation?

Well, what we have uh we have put more trees on this lot than than what was recalled for, and we're trying to buffer that.

I think our distance from that uh from the houses is a hundred we're a hundred and ten feet uh from the houses across the street, and so we absolutely don't mind adding some buffering on the landscaping there to make that uh more less obtrusive there if best we can to soften that up or shift some trees over there, even if we can do more.

We wanted that to be a pretty corner.

I I don't disagree with that.

So we'd like to make that as tractive as possible.

Can you look at the elevation of this that uh side we're talking?

Okay, yeah.

So what we have here is we have a large vertical piece of all stone going five stories, and then to break it up with some articulation on there of the uh of the facade.

We've also brought stone on this corner, and then we we lean a you see our logo there.

Um we take the uh the wood all the way from the second floor to the fifth floor to try and make it really pop and and do something that's different or a look, and we we elements positioning is kind of a natural look.

And we we elements positioning is kind of a natural look.

There's a lot of green on our roof if you saw that and natural wood look, so which we thought adds to the so I'm I got it on Friday.

I don't have an answer for you.

What I could do.

It staff didn't uh suggest a specific, but we got it on Friday.

I if we could come up with something different to do, I I don't have a problem if it can make that in prettier, but I don't have an idea for you yet.

But we will take it under advisement between now and council if we can come up with a tweak on it, we would be happy to.

But if it makes it if there's a suggestion, I'd be glad to listen to it.

But uh and I apologize, my architect uh is GBA architects and the principals on vacation this week.

So apologies turn my microphone back on any other questions?

Commissioner Finley.

Thank you.

Um is there some reason why you didn't contact uh councilwoman Hunter in District Three and the neighbors that live on Waxwing and the church that's on Bardin.

I understand that you went to a church, but they're quite a ways away.

They're not in the general vicinity of this hotel uh project.

Yeah, I I I apologize, and uh when I was here 20 years ago, I didn't meet with uh P and Z first.

I did meet with the council member for that area, and we absolutely will be happy to do that and contact her.

Uh we we it was Robert Rivera 20 years ago that we dealt with, and uh we never had any complaints.

Uh what we have uh liked about being in the neighborhood, we have several employees that live over there that walk to our hotels to work when we own the home wood in the Hampton, and uh we always felt like they were very good neighbors, and we never had a complaint.

We never had a complaint at the last two uh PZs or council from the neighborhood, and it would be happy to meet with her, but we've not heard any negative comments.

The church that did write us a letter, they they were one of our largest customers that were uh reached out to us and we always supported them.

So when we were calling customers that we had previously, we just asked what kind of hotel do you want?

And they were one that we called, and so they said sure they they would love to have your project, but uh that that's why that we didn't go out and seek it other than they were a church that we had done business with.

Okay.

Um and so it just clarify for me where exactly is that church that you do business with?

It's over towards Matlock quite a ways out.

We also did business with the Potter's House Church for years, so in Dallas.

No, over uh well, yes, towards Dallas, towards uh that Cedar Hill area, yes.

Okay, that's quite a ways.

That's right.

And we we draw from quite a ways, and so I I don't look at the one mile necessarily because we we drew from uh Grand Prairie for quite a while, and we still believe we will draw from there.

And I understand that from a commercial basis.

I don't disagree, and I'd be happy to meet with her.

We did not reach out to her, but I would be happy to.

I'm I'm looking at this more from a neighborly basis.

And the church that's on Bardin would be your closest neighbor church-wise.

I'd be happy to reach out to them.

We were there for 20 years and never had a complaint from them or anyone that we heard in the neighborhood, but we'd be happy to reach out to them.

Well, and I'm not even saying you get complaints.

I just think it's a good neighborly thing to do if you're going to build in their neighborhood that you get to know your neighbors and and quite honestly, maybe that would bring you additional business as well.

And and we you bet, yes, ma'am, for for 20 years we've been trying to be the best neighbors we could be in there, yes.

Okay.

The second thing I wanted to ask is did you say it only takes three minutes to get to the entertainment distance?

I said we're three miles.

Oh, three miles.

I was gonna say, man, you must have an airplane or something because it takes me a lot longer to get there than three minutes.

Three miles really the new drones thing will drop us off up there.

Where I live, and I don't live too far from there.

I'm nine miles from City Hall.

Yes, ma'am.

So I'm not sure how that could be three miles to the entertainment distance.

Ma'am, I may be wrong.

I don't know, but I think we're approximately three miles, but we do a lot of business with shuttling people to the stadium.

All right.

Do you happen to know how many airplanes we can park at the airport at one time?

I have no idea.

I just curious.

I mean, because if we're gonna be drawing people from airplanes landing uh to go to events and stuff, I think it would be important to know how many airplanes we can actually park at the airport that might be staying at your hotel.

Yeah, my hotel filled up with them, so I don't know how many they we ran out of rooms before they ran out of space.

I'll tell you that.

Okay.

All right, thank you.

Uh Commissioner Blake.

So I'm gonna put you guys on the spot here, and I'm gonna be a little bit more direct than she was.

Um before y'all leave tonight.

I I plan on voting yes.

I think this is a great project.

But I would like y'all, all of y'all's commitment that before y'all bring another project up here, you meet with more residents, you meet with your city council, and you pick some of this the the um members up here to meet with.

I probably would have been the worst one because I kind of like the project when I saw it.

But I do think that y'all need to do that due diligence and make that point because having more support from the community certainly helps you and makes this process a lot easier.

You're absolutely right, and so we would be happy and we'll be happy to meet with uh we'll reach out to council, and it was our our apologies for not reaching out to you.

Commissioner Maddox.

As you heard upstairs, uh I'm still kind of on the fence about the project, but I'm open to being convinced.

Okay.

Um sorted I can get my arms around it.

Can you concisely summarize why it is that you feel that with over 800 potential rooms in this area, you feel like the demand is there to support your project?

Yes, sir.

Uh you're right.

That there's 800, there's 2800 rooms in the Arlington corridor.

If you take the uh first exit, which you take up to Epic on uh uh three we go to the George Bush over there, and then it goes over to uh the uh the two Marriott Hotels and to the Holiday Express over by the mall.

There's 2800 rooms in that area.

The reason I would say that it absolutely can support it is because occupancies are running it uh down there, you know, 78 to 80 percent over the in that in that zip code alone.

And so they're turning people away.

That means that on Monday through Thursday night they're full on Thursday nights, on Sunday nights, unless there's a ball game, they're not.

They drop down occupancy quite a bit.

So uh they're absolutely they're they're uh their uh regret service not able to satisfy the demand and the ass that's there.

Where they've gone is over several when it's full with the upscale hotels in South Arlington, they've gone over to Grand Prairie is my what we believe and what we've watched with and I I had sales directors that worked for us on our two hotels there that now work over at Epic and over at that neighborhood there with the Hilton Garden Inn.

So that's where I'm I know we can win them back here, and so with a good quality hotel.

And it's it's more convenient.

So there is the airport piece that comes in and out, it's easy on off by I-20.

It's a convenient space to stop for Arlington.

It is the highest occupancy in the city.

Uh it is 70 percent, or the city is at 63, and this the statewide total is 62.

It's a healthy and very good hotel market.

And from its history, it has grown at a significant pace, and we believe in Arlington with what uh is coming in new business development, South Arlington, very much so, sir.

Yes, uh Commissioner Carter.

I appreciate your information.

I I know you I can tell you know a lot about the hotel business, but so if you could clear up and help me feel a little better uh better about it.

If the occupancy is so uh 70 percent and satisfactory for the hotel business, um, and you know a lot about the area.

Um question I would have is why would one hotel at Arbrook and uh and Collins fell?

I guess maybe because of financing, but if and the industry, what would what would be your answer to that?

Which would you would say to someone that asked that question?

And the other thing that I've heard for all of Arlington, do you do you think that your new hotel here will create blight at these other hotels?

It'll be a brand new hotel, the one you built in 06.

You've already given up on that one.

Uh did you give up on it because it was already an aging property and it was I didn't give up.

We were pretty successful on our exit, and we have to be at some times for do other things, but we didn't give up on it.

A profitable sell, but you still profit.

Yes, okay.

So you get you uh so you sold it for a profit to turn it around or to turn the money around.

Okay.

So you does the but does this newer hotel um does it does it does a new shiny building like yours will be here.

Does it does it um wane the value of the of these other hotels in your area uh really in essence just taking business away from them?

I uh to the first part of your question.

I I'm I'm not I know uh the gentleman who tried to develop the uh property on the north side of I-20, and um uh he's a good man uh and so I I have nothing negative to say about them.

They did hit a time when interest rates jumped significantly.

Uh I do know that, and then it was uh a difficulty.

Um all I can tell you is from um our perspective.

Uh Dad brought this up when we went to council last time.

Someone said, Who are you?

and said, Jake, or you do what he said he's gonna do, and so we do what we say we're gonna do.

We follow through with it on all of our projects.

We've built public-private partnerships with cities and convention centers.

And so uh I I don't know if I can answer your question, other than he may have had a uh just his capital stack and how his bank and group put together.

I'm not gonna speak to that.

I will tell you this.

We we took into account in our feasibility study.

Uh we knew that home two was proposed.

We treated it like uh he was going to move forward and build.

Uh we also which was a spring hill and a town place, a spring hill is an upscale hotel town place is uh upper mid scale.

We also took into account a proposed um there was one more town place suite, spring hill, an avid was proposed by IHG.

So we took all of those rooms into an account, took what has been the compounded growth rate of the last 20 years, in particular last four and five, and we firmly believe our hotel and the others there will also be successful.

If if I thought that they're just gonna it doesn't do me any good if the hotel next door goes downhill and he starts dropping his rates to 80 bucks or 70 bucks, we start to lose money because now it's a price war.

So I don't want to invest in a market where because I came the others just drop off.

That's not a good business.

And I want you to be able to trust your feasibility study.

That's that's what your business thrives on.

You know, that's the information you're relying on.

So uh but uh it it the whole area if with that one hotel that that's north of 20 on Collins and Arbrook that it it does bring the area down, so it does create doubt in the hotel industry for the area, and so and we I think we've learned tonight that maybe that's gonna be remedy, but uh so that will help the area, the at least the looks of the area of what the general public thinks.

But um the I just I just feel like I uh for the future um we Arlington and a lot of these big um commercial corners that we have you know it's we've got some blight, and I I love Arlington so much, so I try to think about the future about what we can do to make it a better place in 20 to 30 years time, 50 years time, and the building to me, I know we're you know concentrating on highest and best use of the land, and I do think that I do think that hotel is the highest and best use of this land for two acres.

I mean, we we're not gonna get a Kroger there or anything, so um, but but this building still to me, when do you think that the hotel industry, your industry will start to have some higher expectations on these on the looks and the design of these buildings because they're all basically, you know, yours is like you said, I'm glad to see it's kind of at least an L-shape to create a le a nice outdoor pool area with a little bit of wind protection, but basically every hotel is a big triangle or a big rectangular box.

Yes, sir, and flat roofs, where 25 years ago, when you were you were building hotels, they're vastly different.

They're they're they had either uh they were built more as towers or built more as uh you know roof pitches on them and had more of a uh a custom look to them, but now we're just looking at these multi-panel buildings.

When do you think the industry is gonna have to upgrade that look to get it a to where it has a more timeless look and feel to it?

I I I am all for that.

I and uh Gerald, I think Gerald's Hilton Garden Inn that he built 20 years ago is a uh has he's added hip roof pieces on there, he added additional stack stone where he didn't need to.

Our homewood, we did the same thing.

We added stone where we didn't need to.

We added uh some because it was more of a traditional look, some uh balcony type pieces on there.

I'm in favor of that when we can.

This is a modern uh somewhat more contemporary looking hotel, but we've added a wood look that goes up five stories, we've added to have a difference in and and fields, we've added stone all the way up to five to complete five stories.

Uh we have a I think it's a very unique looking portachet with a glass that hangs out over it, and it's uh if you look at it, it's it's canter levered, it's not cheap to build, and we could have done a cheaper option.

And so I I don't disagree with you that you know as hoteliers as developers, period, we should always be looking for something better and nicer to do.

Um we've made we're open to the I I like the suggestion on the additional glazing on the windows.

I'm I'm on board with that.

So I would not disagree with you that there are things that we can always do in that, but I I kind of like the building.

So I wouldn't have been building it if we didn't.

I will say this, one comment on um what Arlington can do.

We we love Arlington.

We've had a great experience for 20 years.

Our hotels have all been successful, they're still successful today, and I'm proud of them, even though I don't uh no longer own them.

I think Arlington uh, you know, uh they have put some good rules in place.

You've asked for upper mid scale and above.

Um I won't build anything lower than a upper mid scale.

We are doing one in East Texas, we're building a home too, and we could have done that here.

We chose to do an upscale hotel here because we think uh yeah, if I could do a luxury and it made sense, it would be fun and it would be great to do if it financially could make sense and be successful, but they need to work or they will be blighted places that don't work out over time.

So we know that this will work, it's an upscale.

Gerald and I in our discussion, he's like, Mike, I want to partner with you, but don't do it an upper mid scale.

Let's do an upscale.

So our desire here with this two acres, there are upper mid scales that we could have done, but we chose to go the highest one possible.

Okay.

Uh thank you for the information on uh I do appreciate it.

Um but yeah, I just uh hope I just want the best for Arlington and I just I just feel like the the the it could have been better.

I do feel like if you would have done the next step up that it could have really been um and this one will probably be successful too.

I'm not doubting that.

I'm just saying that build it and they will come and you would get it maybe get a different clientele and they would have a longer uh lifespan on the building, uh um a longer um time if it were it being a place where uh people would you know still love the old building in 25, 30 years time, but and I'll just say that out of experience.

I stay in a lot of hotels and um the the a hotel that's eight years old is gonna be a far inferior product than something that was built 30 years ago uh plus.

So that's where I I you know just I understand.

Wish we could see some of the better quality.

Thank you.

Okay.

Um couple of things.

Um, I'm uh uh I'm leaning uh positive on this.

Uh um I'm still a little bit on the tight rope.

And uh Mr.

Chair.

Uh Mr.

Alley had something he wanted to say a while ago that he got up and did it get answered or he was asking about the airport number of airplanes, about the airport, yeah.

And I wanted to address uh microphone, sir, please.

I want to address Commissioner Finley's question that I apologize truly.

Uh we looked at this project as a continuation of the development.

We had done a lot of I would say getting in the community in the first phase.

This is a containation of that.

So Errol and me did not go and talk to each individual from there, but we saw the hotel as a cluster to fill that area because in hotel business, you have just like restaurant business, you have clusters.

You have another restaurant coming, all restaurants do good if that's what you want to go eat.

So we didn't look at it as let's try to convince them to buy this because the hotels are there.

And because 50% of those hotels in that cluster, either Mike and Jack or I have developed in that area.

So it's sort of rounding out our development, and we end up with a uh extended state that's upscaled that accommodates a new development in Arlington, which is the airport.

And the airport there is not how many planes, it's gonna be a satellite manufacturing facility that's gonna protect the United States in a global shield.

So a lot of the people that are going to be staying there to be standing extended state, it's not gonna be a one-night in and out.

They're gonna spend a week at a time in that hotel where they can have extended state services.

So it's all tailored to make sure that it fits the puzzle of what's already there.

As far as other hotels, I totally agree with Mike.

We're not trying to cannibalize any hotel.

We believe the boat rises all ships.

I mean the water rises all ships.

Those hotels that are there that have been there for a while, all go to experience if they don't come to our hotel, they're gonna stay in that area because they're gonna have more choices.

We just bring on another choice in a high-end extended stay area.

So when you look at it and and I agree that we didn't there were closer churches but Cornerstone is a church that is 2,000 plus members that draws a lot that has a lot of impact and I would imagine there are a lot of parishioners that live in that area and not on his jack seat employees are going to be an area that's going to be part of this project.

So it's our and my oversight from saying okay this is not a green space this is an added addition to cap out that location so I I hope that helps a little bit why we didn't do it and have no problems going and talking to the commissioner the council person anybody else we need to have because you're right we have to have relationship with the community because it doesn't do as our biggest sales for is our community.

We can have salespeople but people's word of mouth that they take care of you is important.

And we get that from people that are not investing in it just that's a nice of all the hotels there this is a nice one and you want to come to this area and you're correct it is about 8.7 miles because I ride my bike from there to here.

So yeah he was a little wrong on on the distance maybe I need to ride faster so uh I hope that answered your question and I apologize for that.

Any other questions does the applicant have anything else to say no sir.

We we appreciate thank you we're excited to do the project in Arlington yes sir.

Commissioner Carter additional question.

I've been thinking about the the occupancy again is uh Commissioner Maddox has brought up the but the the uh the the decrease doesn't seem to make us any sense but I got a question for you since you're in the hotel hotel business um was there was a was there an uh an accountable um percentage that was that was possibly where these were these hotels were uh paid for by FEMA or the uh federal government for any type of uh long-term hotel stays in the in this district that could have changed this um percentages up or down in in 23 down to in 24 uh I I doubt that some of the upscale hotels did a lot of Phoenix FEMA business I just doubt that they did they typically don't and so some of the decline and a couple of the larger ones I I just would be surprised if that was what caused the homewood to drop and what you can typically have happen is you know we dealt with Bell helicopter the the airport point was a good point Gerald made uh we did training with Bell helicopter for nine months with business for a period we did training with the helicopter group that was in Grand Prairie and then there's a four clip crown left across the street that built does uh uh training for their people so my personal opinion is that there's 23 was really a re a rebound year uh and coming out of uh COVID and 22, 23, 24, I think people kind of the the overall market in the country dipped a little bit and down into 24.

Uh from a metro perspective I don't have it with me but Arlington is in better shape than uh the Frisco Plano area is right now.

It is the occupancies are higher the homewood suites owned by Magnolia Lodging would love to be doing that kind of numbers the last two years.

So from a and you take Texas as in general Arlington is is pretty healthy.

Now Houston is now booming again even though oil's at 60 bucks but I I don't have an answer and I don't know for a fact whether it's FEMA or not I would just be surprised that if that impacted the upscale hotels that much me personally was there any industry knowledge though since you're in it in it and out of it every day was there any industry knowledge of there being at least was that it was that a was that a possibility that some of it was FEMA or federal dollars that were funding the hotel rooms.

I think cross statewide there was sure there's probably always FEMA dollars funding different hotels and different we have some that had hurricane spikes down on the coast in Texas that we were involved in down in Beaumont that spiked for a period of time.

But I I don't I don't me personally I'm not as the owner and investor I'm not concerned about FEMA dollars not coming to hotels any longer I I don't think that we need that I think there's good business opportunities.

If you I think Lowe's would skew it just a little bit because it is 900 rooms being added.

That's that's you know what on whatever 8,000 room nights, that's a 10% jump all at once.

Yeah.

So I I personally think that impacted the occupancy just a little bit.

Okay.

I did appreciate your expertise on the on in the industry.

It's a it's uh I don't know much about the hotel business, but uh it's it's one I've always been a little bit intrigued by, so I appreciate the information.

Yes, sir.

Thank you.

Commissioner Finley.

I'm sorry, just if you'll humor me here.

Um when was the Hampton Inn built we uh I I got I check my dates this morning.

Um we opened uh I'm sorry, I we bought the 13 acres in 2005.

In 2006, we came before P and Z and it opened in 2007.

Okay.

I got married in 2009.

Yes, ma'am.

We booked a block of rooms there in 2009.

And I know this.

I pray we took care of you, ma'am.

Yes, ma'am.

Okay.

All right.

All right.

So I will tell you this.

To get to get a block of rooms at the discounted rate because we were getting a block of rooms.

It was 149 a night plus taxes.

Okay.

I am on their website right now.

Yes, ma'am.

And it's 104 dollars a night plus taxes.

So when you sold that, yes, ma'am.

Was it because the room was it because room rates were having to go down?

No, no, ma'am.

And if we if if you bought a block of rooms from us for 149 dollars, that was quite a weekend for us.

It might have been an event weekend, it might have been a uh well.

This was six months in advance.

Okay, yes, so but we we plan for uh the day the rangers post their schedule, we've got it booked in, and we start our a revenue management system starts to build what that is, and also with the cowboys, we build that in.

And also when other events we know are in the market, we we build that in one or two or three years in advance.

So, yes, ma'am.

So I I can't answer your question.

Um I'll I'll tell you what when we sold it, um, interest rates were down, the cap rate was which is a function of the purchase price, was just extremely attractive for us and to make to make a sale.

And so, yes, ma'am.

Okay, and so the rate no ma'am, the rates are not I I I'd be happy to send it to you, but the rates are much higher than they were 15 years ago in in general.

So it might on one weekend versus this weekend, it there's always variances, but yes, ma'am.

I I will tell you year to year the rates are higher at the hotels we own 15 years ago than they are, they're higher now than they were then.

Okay, very much so.

All right, that's all I wanted.

Thank you.

But I hope we did take care of you.

So you didn't say that.

Oh, okay.

I'm sorry we didn't get you.

Looking for a week.

We'll work on the someone else's.

I think we've reached a point where I'm I'm gonna try and not close the public session just yet because I have a feeling that is this is where I uh open it up for discussion before someone makes a motion.

I see the motion and I see a second.

But are there any are there any comments or questions that anybody else wants to make before I close the public session?

Good.

Yes, sir.

Go ahead, Commissioner Blake.

Any chance you'll get this approved and be able to have it done by the World Cup.

We we would love to, but uh I don't believe we'll be that quick because we do have to spend uh six months working on plans and then takes at least a year to build.

We would love to, but and those are events come back to what the city of Arlington.

Um it's a year-round place.

The events of the World Cup are wonderful, and they they it's just a very rounded place.

So any other questions of the applicant or staff at this time Commissioner Sumter.

Just one comment to the motion maker.

Um sounds like he's open to the staff recommendations, which um sound like it's a good idea, but then also this is a specific use permit, so we can tie it specifically to the applicant if we wanted to.

So just wanted to put that out there for discussion.

So remind me, but I believe when when you're making that statement, if we tie it to the applicant, that means that when and if five years from now they sell the uh the land to a different operator or in the hotel to different operator, the conditions of the SUP will remain in effect.

Is that your point?

Okay.

All right.

Very good.

Any other questions?

Well, with that, thank you very much, gentlemen.

I'm going to close the public session.

Thank you all very much.

Well, I should indeed I do need to ask this.

Is there anybody here in opposition?

Seeing no one, then I'm going to close the public session.

Let's see if it stays closed or not.

I'd like to I know there's a motion uh, but I'm gonna make a couple comments.

Um part of this is to the applicant.

What's changed in the last 15 years is that the city uh leaders and council members and planning and zoning commissioners have come to the realization that we have a very limited amount of land available, and because of that, we are a lot more picky, and we actually try and uh and get the best uh product that we can get.

There were a lot of comments that were made upstairs, and there's a lot of other things that I could say, but I'd like to kind of make it this uh this this final comment.

Any time we as a commission approve a plan development or an SUP or even any kind of a zoning change.

We've been taught highest and best use.

We hear that all the time.

And to me, I ask myself that this question what does that mean to me?

And what it means to me is yeah, I want the the best use for the land, but highest and best use to me means what's best for the city, and by that, what's best for the citizens?

That's how I look at all of these things.

And we do have difference of different opinions about what that may mean, and that's okay.

And my job as chair is upstairs at the work session in here is to get people to say what they believed to sway us.

I'm in favor of this hotel.

I'm gonna vote yes tonight, and I'm gonna uh I am gonna ask that they accept the staff considerations, and I am gonna agree with Dr.

Sumter's, I mean to Mr.

Sumter's suggestion that uh we uh make sure that the SUP carries on with uh with the land.

But I'm in favor of this.

Uh I think it's gonna benefit the citizens.

It is gonna increase our hotel in uh tax, which in turn helps to ameliorate as much as we possibly can the property tax rate in the citizens.

The more hotels, the better it is for the citizens of Orlington.

I think this is the highest and best use in this location.

If anyone else wants to make any comments, uh this is the time to do so.

Commissioner Blake, would you state your motion?

Like make a motion to approve SUP 25-1 element hotels with the staff considerations and make it a point that this will carry on with the um with the development.

Commissioner Sumter, is that your second?

Uh yes, sir.

I'm sorry, can I can I add one thing?

Sure, go ahead.

That they make a point to meet with uh city council, women hunter, the neighborhood, the at-large, council members, and um businesses that are in that corridor so I oh you need to make sure you state the correct case number too.

Did I not SUP 25-3?

Yeah.

I'd like to make the motion to approve SUP 25-3 element hotels with the appropriate staff considerations and the addition to continue this uh approval with the property and the addition of between now and the time you go to city council, make sure that you talk to the appropriate council members and community leaders in that area.

Commissioner Sumter, is that your second?

Yes, sir.

Cast your vote.

Motion passes eight to one.

Thank you for your business.

Thank you for coming tonight.

Uh do talk to the the appropriate people before you get to council.

It'll help a lot.

Thank you.

And with that, let's see.

Is there anyone else that has any announcements?

No staff announcements.

No staff announcements.

Let's see.

Okay.

And no reports from boards or commissions?

No, sir.

Well, then I'd like to remind everybody the next regular session of meet uh regular session meeting of the planning and zoning commission is Wednesday, September the third at 5 30 p.m.

We are adjourned.

Thank you.

Well, we got out before seven.