Terre Haute, IN
All the pieces of a new downtown Terre Haute are coming together with the announcement of construction at the corner of Eighth and Wabash that will mean a second new hotel for the city and a downtown home for the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum.
Fishers, Indiana-based Dora Brothers Hospitality Corp. and the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum will join forces to undertake two projects that will rehabilitate the former Tribune Building at 721 Wabash Ave. to house a Candlewood Suites extended-stay hotel and will also provide a prominent and expanded location for the brand new children’s museum.
Steve Witt, president of the Terre Haute Economic Development Corporation, said, “We’re excited about this plan because it compliments the other projects that are already under way downtown – the new Hilton Garden Inn, the new transportation facility and parking garage, the revamping of the Seventh Street Arts Corridor – as well as the existing features that attract people to the downtown area – Indiana State University, Hulman Civic Center, the Swope Museum, the Clabber Girl Museum. Now with an extended stay hotel and a new and improved children’s museum, downtown Terre Haute is becoming a true destination point that will help us in our other economic development attraction efforts.”
The project breaks down like this:
• Rehabilitation of the Tribune Building will include exterior restorations, new windows, a new roof, new plumbing and electrical utilities, modern seismic reinforcements and a redesigned interior to accommodate 99 hotel rooms designed for customers planning extended stays in downtown Terre Haute, according to John Thompson of Thompson Thrift, the firm providing development and construction services.
• The adjoining structure on the corner of Eighth Street and Wabash Avenue will be demolished to make room for a new six-story building. The first three floors will provide the home for the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum, while the upper three floors will become part of Candlewood Suites.
Candlewood Suites will be the second downtown project undertaken by Dora Brothers. Its $12 million Hilton Garden Inn is currently under construction at the corner of Seventh and Wabash.
“We like to cluster hotels,” said Tim Dora. “The products (Hilton Garden Inn and Candlewood Suites) really compliment each other.” Dora said his group has studied the market and determined that the extended stay facility is a natural fit for the area. “The activity Terre Haute has seen in the past three years has provided an additional incentive for us to continue to invest in the community,” he said.
The total cost of the hotel project is estimated at $8 million, with $1 million of the investment to be secured by a loan to Dora Brothers that will be supported by proceeds from the Terre Haute Downtown Tax Increment Finance (TIF) district.
The downtown home for the new children’s museum will be a $5 million investment that includes a $1 million match from the City of Terre Haute. Steve Schrohe, a member of the museum’s board of directors, said the
museum will pay Dora Brothers $400,000 for the property, as well as for rights to parking, architectural fees, construction costs of interior stair towers, utility connections and maintenance of common areas, the total value of which is $800,000. The museum will own the property and will give Candlewood Suites a vertical easement for the upper floors. Construction of the interior portion of the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum will be let out for bids.
Schrohe said land on North Third Street that had been made available by Union Hospital for the building of the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum will be returned to the Hospital, and that Hospital officials are fully supportive of the new downtown location.
“Three years ago when the idea for a new children’s museum was taking shape, a downtown location was not an option,” Schrohe explained. “The Eighth and Wabash building gives us a central location close to hotels and other museums. It also offers ample on-site parking, allowing convenient and safe access to the new children’s museum.”
Mayor Kevin Burke said the city’s portion of the new Terre Haute Children’s Museum project will come from the city’s Economic Development Income Tax revenue. The State of Indiana announced last month that it had underpaid the city more than $2 million after collecting the tax since 2004. The city’s commitment of $1 million will be paid on a matching basis as the new museum raises money through grants and donations.
Work on the two projects is scheduled to begin in the spring. Candlewood Suites will be open 12 months from the beginning of construction. The new Terre Haute Children’s Museum is scheduled to open in August 2008.
