By Susan Dickson
Staff Writer
Work on the long-awaited 300 East Main project will likely start within several weeks, with the first phase of the development to be completed within 14 months of the start date, according to the developer.
The first phase of the project includes a 144-room Hampton Inn and Suites and a six-level parking deck. Additional phases will include a five-story retail and office space near the train tracks and redevelopment of the building that houses Cat’s Cradle and Amante Gourmet Pizza.
Construction work on the first phase will likely begin within “weeks, not months,†said Laura Van Sant of Main Street Properties, the project’s developer.
“We do anticipate breaking ground shortly,†she said. “We don’t actually have a date yet because we’re getting some ‘i’s dotted and ‘t’s crossed.â€
The project will begin with the demolition of four buildings, including the former Performance Bike (more recently Furniture Follies) building, the former Webster’s Cleaners building and two abandoned houses. The demolition will allow for the construction of the hotel and then the parking deck.
“The idea would be that they’re completed at the same time,†Van Sant said.
The Carrboro Board of Aldermen agreed in March to lease 150 daytime and 250 nighttime spaces in the parking deck, which helped the development win financing and cleared the way for construction of the deck and the hotel.
According to the agreement, the town will lease the spaces for an amount equal to 3 percent of the annual gross receipts of the Hampton Inn, capped at $90,000 annually. The initial lease term is five years.
The second phase of the project will likely be the five-story building near the train tracks, Van Sant said, though redevelopment of the buildings that house Cat’s Cradle and other businesses could start then too, depending on what The ArtsCenter decides to do. The ArtsCenter owns the space it occupies.
Though the developers received a conditional-use permit for the project in September 2008, the state of the economy has prevented the development from moving along as initially scheduled.
“It was about a week before Lehman Brothers went under, so the timing was interesting, to say the least,†Van Sant said. “It’s just taken a while to figure out some ways to get the project financed.â€