PORT ANGELES –Parking emerged Monday as the biggest issue facing the developer of a proposed conference center.
The Downtown Forward Executive Committee met Monday morning to consider Randal Jay Ehm’s proposed four-story, 150-room Crowne Plaza hotel and conference center on 3.75 waterfront acres at the foot of Oak Street.
Ehm would like to begin building the hotel in July and open it by May 2003. The city is considering whether to award Ehm a 20-year, $100,000 annual subsidy from the city’s bed taxes.
The Lodging Tax Advisory Committee delayed making a recommendation Thursday after a 90-minute discussion that ended with a request for more information from Ehm.
That committee and the Downtown Forward Executive Committee will meet jointly in mid-May to consider a recommendation to the City Council.
The main group reviewing the project, the Conference Center Review Committee, a subcommittee of the Lodging Tax Committee, also delayed a recommendation following an April 11 meeting.
That group will meet again today for a conference call with The Chambers Group, the Seattle firm conducting an independent analysis of Ehm’s business and marketing plans. The firm’s report should be completed by the end of the week.
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The rest of this story appears in the Tuesday Peninsula Daily News Clallam County edition. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.
