Mayor rejects convention center hotel

Mayor Will Sessoms tells WAVY.com that the financial deal for the proposed $109 million convention center hotel is not a good deal for the city.

"After talking with council during deliberations ...the deal that is on the table won't fly," Sessoms said.

Sessoms then sent a letter concerning a public hearing Jan. 10 and a vote scheduled for Jan. 24, saying they are "deferred indefinitely".

"The door to a headquarters hotel needs to be kept open, but we must work toward a proposal that provides a win-win for our economy, Virginia Beach and the citizens of this great community," Sessoms said in a letter to city council.

The $109 million hotel would have required, after debt is paid off, taxpayers to put up at least $38 million.

Hotel opponent Robert Dean said in the end he knew building a convention center hotel was never going to fly, "We thought the public's opinion would eventually get to him and it did."

The proposed Hyatt Regency Convention Center Hotel was going to be located on 19th Street, next to the Virginia Beach Convention Center.

The least expensive cost to taxpayers would likely be expanding the Double Tree Hotel, located next to the Convention Center. But, Mayor Sessoms says he can't support that.

"We are not comparing apples to apples.? A Double Tree to a Hyatt Regency is not comparing apples to apples when comparing quality of the product," Sessoms explained.

In Dec., Mayor Sessoms said he wanted to seek the counsel and wisdom of the people on the hotel.? Since then, WAVY.com has reported extensively on the pros and cons of the hotel project, including a report on alleged misleading claims by the city that Virginia Beach has lost 77 conventions because there is no hotel.

Critics claim that number is greatly exaggerated.

Dean said, "There is no question about it.? You all dug into this, and you found the number and you've done the due diligence when in fact the staff should have done it."?

Sessoms countered, "Regardless of 10 On Your Side or any other type of public pressure, I think it is my responsibility to do what is right for Virginia Beach...and I still support a convention center hotel."

Dean told WAVY.com the only way to go forward now is to have a Nov. referendum on whether the city wants a convention center hotel.

"This thing needs a stake through its heart.? It was a pig in a poke and now it's a vampire from Transylvania trying to bite the taxpayers in the neck," Dean said.

Mayor Sessoms hopes developer Armada Hoffler comes back with a new, "better" deal for taxpayers.?

In a released statement, Armada Hoffler said they were disappointed to read Sessoms' letter. However, there? is no mention of any intent to come back with a "better" deal.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45874193/ns/local_news-portsmouth_va/

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