Dayton Daily News

Mendelson's looks to become a hotel

Developer wants to add another facility near Dayton Dragons’ ballpark.

- By Cornelius Frolik Staff Writer

The developer who opened downtown Dayton’s first newly constructe­d hotel in decades wants to build another one nearby by Day Air Ballpark, where the Dayton Dragons play.

Crawford Hoying plans to build a new, 134-room AC Hotel by Marriott on part of the Mendelson’s property across from the ballpark.

It is also a short walk from the Fairfield Inn & Suites that the developer opened two years ago in the Water Street District.

The new hotel will be six stories and will be almost 90,000 square feet, offering a lounge, media library, fitness center and meeting spaces.

AC Hotels by Marriott are very modern and hip and have a crisp design and feel, said Brent Crawford, principal of Crawford Hoying.

The new hotel will have a rooftop bar and full-service restaurant that overlooks the baseball diamond, which undoubtedl­y will be a major regional destinatio­n, he said.

“I think people are going to be shocked by what this can do for that area and the experience it can create,” he said.

Crawford Hoying said work on the hotel will begin in March, with a planned opening of mid to late 2021, hopefully in time for the baseball season.

Crawford said two of the newer, smaller Mendelson’s buildings along East First Street will be torn down to make way for the hotel.

Crawford Hoying, which is based in Dublin, opened an AC Hotel by Marriott in Bridge Park in that city a couple of years ago, and it is one of the top-performing hotels of its brand in the nation, Crawford said.

The rooftop bar in Dayton will provide unmatched views of the ballpark, riverfront and city, which will be popular during the warm months, but it also will have plastic, heated “igloos” that allow people to dine outside comfortabl­y during the fall and winter, Crawford said.

“We have a rooftop bar here that has really become one of the go-to destinatio­ns in all of Columbus, not just Dublin,” he said.

The rooftop bar and restaurant will have an entry and elevator separate from the hotel, and the elevator will go straight to the top floor.

The rooftop bar and restaurant will be 6,100 square feet, with indoor and outdoor patios, as well as 1,700 square feet of private event space and an outdoor terrace, which is expected to be used for weddings and corporate events.

“About 80 to 90% of the people at the rooftop bar won’t be staying at the hotel,” Crawford said.

The new AC Hotel will be a higher price point than the nearby Fairfield Inn, and it is likely to attract business and leisure travelers, as well as people who want a stay- cation, Crawford said.

“Typically as we do developmen­ts like this, we want to hit different price points for different clientele,” he said.

Crawford Hoying, in partnershi­p with Woodard Developmen­t, has invested about $120 million into the area around Day Air Ballpark. They have created new housing, offices, restaurant­s, hotel rooms and other amenities.

The firm is creating a similar district in Dayton that it already has developed in Dublin, and the hotel is just the latest piece of that work, and more announceme­nts are on the way, Crawford said.

Last year, they opened a $15 million Fairfield Inn & Suites hotel next to the Water Street office building, which was the first new hotel built downtown in decades.

 ??  ?? Crawford Hoying is proposing a new hotel at a site formerly owned by Mendelson’s. This site is located at 418 E. 1st Street, across from the large, 550,000 square foot Mendelson building.
Crawford Hoying is proposing a new hotel at a site formerly owned by Mendelson’s. This site is located at 418 E. 1st Street, across from the large, 550,000 square foot Mendelson building.
 ?? Source: maps4news.com/©HERE STAFF ??
Source: maps4news.com/©HERE STAFF
 ??  ?? Two of the newer, smaller Mendelson’s buildings along East First Street will be torn down to make way for the hotel.
Two of the newer, smaller Mendelson’s buildings along East First Street will be torn down to make way for the hotel.

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