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Hotel study results to be released Cleveland-based firm partnering with KSU, Kent on downtown project

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Matt Fredmonsky
November 16, 2008

By Matt Fredmonsky
Record-Courier staff writer
The Kent community might just hear some groundbreaking news in early 2009 about the fate of a proposed downtown hotel and conference center.
Fairmount Properties, the Cleveland-based development firm partnering with Kent State University and the city on a downtown redevelopment project, is planning to announce this winter the results of its feasibility study on such a facility.
Randy Ruttenberg, a principal partner at Fairmount, said Friday considerable progress has been made on the hotel and conference center component of the project.
"We now are much closer in identifying most of the potential room night users for this facility," he said. "We believe that within the first quarter of 2009 we will be in a position to announce the type and size of this hospitality facility.
"Our partnership continues to enthusiastically pursue this development with both human capital and financial resources and (we) look forward to celebrating a groundbreaking in the not too distant future with the city of Kent, the university and the community at-large," Ruttenberg said.
The firm began studying the economic feasibility of a hotel and conference center downtown as early as 2007 through letters to area corporations and agencies asking their potential use for the facility. Omni Hospitality of Solon, a major hotel development firm, and Pizzuti Companies, the Columbus-based firm headed by Kent native Ronald Pizzuti, are partnering in the hotel component with Fairmount.
How and in what capacity KSU, one of the hotel's biggest advocates, will participate remains unclear for now.
Yank Heisler, dean of KSU College of Business Administration, this week repeated remarks KSU President Lester Lefton made to the Daily Kent Stater this summer about KSU's involvement in the hotel aspect of the project.
"(Dr. Lefton) has said clearly we're not in the hotel business, we're in the education business," Heisler said. "What role we could play could come out in many different ways."

Previous Articles:
Third time a charm for Kent hotel? Officials optimistic downtown development will go forward
Aug. 3, 2008
http://www.recordpub.com/news/article/4182212




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    Posted by Fair Tax November 17, 2008
Hmm why is Kent putting up money and KSU is not?

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