Developer Steven Gulas on June 27 received special exception approval to move ahead with plans to construct a new hotel on Glynn Street one block north of downtown Fayetteville.
The Fayetteville Planning and Zoning voted 3-1 to approve the special exception required for hotels in the C-1 (downtown commercial) zoning district.
Voting in favor of the request were commissioners Toby Spencer, Debbie Renfroe and John Reeves. Commissioner Derryll Anderson was opposed. Prior to the vote Anderson cited concerns such as traffic and the potential for the hotel having four floors.
Commissioner Ken Collins chaired the meeting in the absence of Chairman Sarah Murphy. There were no public comments on the proposal.
Gulas and planning staff noted that the special exception approval did not include elevations or site plan considerations. Those topics, along with the number of floors, will be taken up at future meetings.
The property is located on the east side of N. Glynn Street and one lot north of the Dunkin’ Donuts store.
The hotel will likely carry the Comfort Suites brand. As proposed, the hotel would come with 63 guest rooms and total 43,000 sq. ft.
Staff recommended approval with the conditions that the hotel be situated parallel to the roadway and that construction of the Lafayette Avenue extension be required of the developer. The vote to approve did not include the positioning of the building.
Gulas said he is willing to work with the commission on building placement, though he preferred a perpendicular placement on the property.
One of the questions from previous meetings dealt with the height of the hotel, at 50 feet, compared to that of the historic courthouse two blocks away. Gulas at the meeting showed that the courthouse sits at a higher elevation than the hotel.
