Aldermen want another organization to spend $12,500 on hotel market feasibility study

QUINCY — The Quincy City Council rejected by an 11-2 vote Monday night a resolution to spend no more than $12,500 on a hotel market feasibility study.

John Mast, R-5, voted against the resolution, but he isn’t against the idea.

“It was not against hotels in any way,” he said. “But should the city be paying for a study for private enterprise to come in and put up a hotel? If they think they need to put up a hotel, if they see the need, they should provide the study or another entity like GREDF (Great River Economic Development Foundation) or SeeQuincy.com (Quincy Area Convention & Visitors Bureau).”

Ben Uzelac, D-7, and Jack Holtschlag, D-7, were the only aldermen to vote in favor of the resolution. 

Aldermen tabled for two weeks another resolution to spend no more than $25,000 on a housing need/demand analysis and feasibility study. Quincy Mayor Mike Troup said GREDF had received grant money for the housing study. However, GREDF president Kyle Moore is travelling this week, so Troup asked for that resolution to be tabled.

Troup says he has fielded offers for three hotels to be built in Quincy

He was disappointed aldermen overwhelmingly turned down the hotel study.

“(Aldermen) were probably more concerned that maybe another entity should be doing that study, not us,” Troup said. “We’re short of hotels, and we’re short on housing.

“The hotel thing, I thought we were going to be fine with, because we need it. We need hotels. I don’t think the message to the community is we don’t want more hotels. The message is the council doesn’t want to spend money on a study they think somebody else should pay for.”

Troup says he has fielded offers for three hotels to be built in Quincy.

“They each have done some of their own review,” Troup told aldermen. “But I know in working with the franchises, they wonder if there’s any market study that local area has performed. We say no, but we’d be interested in taking a look at that.”

Hotel rooms in city now less than 800

Troup said the city once had 1,000 hotel rooms. It now has less than 800 — not counting the number of bed and breakfast facilities.

“The billiards convention (in March which attracted more than 800 participants) is coming back in the spring. I don’t know that there’s enough hotel rooms within 25 miles of Quincy to house all of the people coming here,” Troup said. “We can’t build them fast enough, but you’re going to need more than a one-week event to justify that kind of an investment. The average hotel is going to be at least $20 million to $25 million to build.”

“That just seems like a large enough amount for any company that they would be able to do their own study,” said Eric Entrup, R-1.

“I hate to say it, but I don’t know that we need 1,000 more rooms,” Troup said. “But I think we need several hundred more.”

“I don’t know why it’s our job to do this,” said Mike Farha, R-4. “(GREDF) should be doing this, and they’ve gone silent. I mean, they can come tell us about all the fishing tournaments, and all that’s wonderful, but this seems like something that would be right up their alley.”

Request to rezone Koch’s Lane property denied

Aldermen unanimously agreed with the Plan Commission’s recommendation to deny a request from Drew Niemann to rezone 1700 Koch’s Lane from single-family residential to neighborhood residential to allow for the construction of multi-family residential units for renters.

Four people from the Windermere neighborhood, just west of the proposed site, spoke to aldermen during the public forum portion of Monday’s meeting. Several others from the neighborhood were in attendance as well.

The property previously was owned by Paul H. and Evelyn J. Pfanschmidt of Athens, Texas. Open dumping took place at the site for at least 30 years.

“I want to thank Drew Niemann and his crew for the improvements to our neighborhood property,” Tim Kincaid said. “We know the area has been an eyesore, and we realized the need for (demolition) for safety and environmental concerns.

“The neighborhood would be better served by leaving the zoning and attracting six to seven 3,000 square foot homes with two-to-three-car garages. Whoever would move in the area would have a vested interest in their homes in the neighborhood.”

John Schafer, assistant director of Central Services, reported 440 tons of material was collected at the week-long citywide cleanup that ended Sept. 30. He said that figure was the third-highest since the city began offering the citywide cleanup. Eighty tons were taken in during a four-hour period Thursday night — the only nighttime period available during the week.

Entrup suggested that at least a second nighttime period be added for next year’s cleanup.

Aldermen also approved: 

• A special event application from Joy Berhorst with Blessing Hospital Breast Center requesting permission to hold the Pink Pass It On walk starting in Washington Park on Oct. 22.
• A special event application from Krista Snyder, representing the Veterans Day Parade of the Quincy Area, requesting permission to hold the annual Veterans Day Parade along Maine Street on Nov. 5. 
• A special event application from Holly Schell, organizer of the #BeLikeGrace Community Glow Event, requesting permission to hold a 5K run/walk event on Oct. 15. 
• That an ordinance be drafted to rezone 2626 S. Eighth and a contiguous property from single-family residential to light Industrial to allow for the construction of a self-storage unit. 
• The mayor’s appointments of Daniel Ware and Jason Hetzler to the technology committee as non-voting members.