Bardstown City Council to consider approval of four new hotel projects
NC GAZETTE / WBRT RADIO
STAFF REPORT
Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018 — The Bardstown City Council is set to approve Development Review Board (DRB) recommendations for four hotels that are planned for construction in the City of Bardstown.
The DRB held a special meeting on Monday, Nov. 19, 2018, to consider four applications for hotels that will mean the addition of 325 new hotel rooms to serve Bardstown and Nelson County.
Two of the hotels are planned for the area of Lincoln Way, while the other two are planned for the construction near Corvins Furniture and Flooring off East John Rowan Boulevard and for a tract on Parkway Drive.
The DRB approved all four projects:
DRB-273. Crestpoint Companies plans to build a four story, 63,600 square-foot Fairfield Inn that will offer 92 rooms. The hotel is planned for the southwest corner of Morton Avenue and Lincoln Way, south of Lincoln National Bank.
DRB-274. HEMA Corporation plans to build a four-story 51,038 square-foot Holiday Inn Express featuring 80 room. The new hotel will be built on the south side of Morton Avenue.
DRB-277. BTT Bardstown plans to build a 44,000 square-foot, four-story LaQuinta Inn featuring 81 rooms. The hotel also will feature a 3,000 square-foot event facility. The new hotel will be built off East John Rowan Boulevard north of Corvin’s Furniture and Flooring.
DRB-236. Bourbon Trail Hospitality plans a four-story, 43,304 square-foot Sleep Inn Mainstay that will feature 72 rooms and a 3,187 square-foot event facility. This hotel will be built on the northeast side of Parkway Drive.
LAQUINTA INN. The DRB discussions regarding the LaQuinta Inn and the Sleep Inn Mainstay both focused on the plans indicating a height of parts of the building going higher than the 50-foot height maximum established by ordinance.
LaQuinta’s building proposal had an overall height of 56 feet. According to the DRB minutes, when asked about lowering the building height, the developers said a lower height would not work because it enlarges the footprint of the building, and the site can’t accommodate a larger building footprint.
The DRB approved the plan on the condition the roof height issue is resolved, and concerns regarding roof-mounted equipment and sidewalk and landscaping plans are addressed. If approved by the city council, the other approvals needed for the project will be administratively approved.
SLEEP IN MAINSTAY. Building height was also an issue for Sleep Inn Mainstay. According to the developer, 95 percent of the actual building is under the 50-foot height limitation; however, the parapet on three edges of the roof — needed to screen roof-mounted equipment — was over the limit at 57 feet, 2 inches in height.
The DRB approved the plan on the condition that additional needed application information — including addressing the building height — would be administratively approved.
Janet Johnston-Crowe, Planning & Zoning Director told WBRT/WOKH Radio and Nelson County Gazette last week that if the council approved the DRB recommendations, the remaining issues on all four plans would be handled by administrative review.
The DRB is a five-member board that reviews commercial projects and how they apply local design standards, which serve as an aid for developers to ensure the properties fit in with the local character of the community.
Sylvia Horlander contributed to this story.
-30-
