New hotel planned in Franklin

A second new hotel is planned in Franklin, adding more options for visitors and further redeveloping the gateway into the city.

A Hampton Inn is planned just west of Interstate 65, off King Street. In addition to the hotel, the 12-acre property will also have eight other lots that could be developed as restaurants, retail shops or even another hotel, according to plans filed with the city.

The four-story, 91-room hotel is planned just east of where a new Fairfield Inn is being built off King Street. Construction on that hotel is ongoing, with the first floor and elevator shaft built and work on the second floor about one-third of the way done, developer Rob Richardson said.

And city officials offered similar incentives to the new development, including a $560,000 grant that could be used to do roadwork and buy additional land.

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In addition, the city also has to approve of what will be built on the property that used to house the Red Carpet Inn, a dilapidated motel that was torn down by the city years ago. City officials want a sit-down restaurant, and under the agreement, the mayor and members of two different boards will need to give the OK for whatever will go into that spot, Mayor Steve Barnett said. If the city doesn’t agree with the proposal, they will not get a permit to build, he said.

Both the development and incentives will need to be approved by multiple city boards. Members of the redevelopment commission, which will need to approve spending tax dollars for the incentives, said they are supportive of the project during a meeting on Tuesday. They plan to meet again Friday for a first vote on the proposed incentives.

Sprague Hotel Developers, which has also developed multiple hotels across central Indiana, including in Greenwood and Edinburgh, plans to invest about $13 million in the project. They hope to begin construction as soon as this fall.

The company is also working with businesses that would be interested in building on the lots surrounding the new hotel, including seeking a sit-down restaurant, which city officials have been seeking for years, and possibly a second hotel in the future, said Nick Sprague, director of business development and general counsel.

“We realize this is your gateway, and we really want it to be something you will be proud of,” Sprague said.

The city and the developers have been working on the project for more than a year, including on getting the more than 12 acres of property that was owned by multiple people into one property that could be developed, Barnett said.

That property includes the former motel, a piece of land city officials have wanted to redevelop for years, and the property that borders Longest Drive that includes a shopping center.

The grant for the city will help the developers purchase the property with the strip mall, and reconstruct the section of Paris Drive that passes by the fast food restaurants north of King Street, Barnett said.