Zoning Change Sought for Hampton Inn

COURT HOUSE – Middle Township Committee’s work session May 20 was the venue for a presentation by Cape May Hospitality LLC, a development group planning the construction of a Hampton Inn off the access road at Exit 10 north on the Garden State Parkway (GSP). 
The estimated $17-million project would be located on land that has long housed the Design Collaborative. The development company purchased the property in February for $650,000.
Plans call for a 100-room, four-story hotel that would bring a Hilton hotel brand to the township. Amenities would include a fitness center, indoor pool, lobby bar, and meeting space that would accommodate up to 70 individuals.
Cape May Hospitality representatives presented the results of their market research. They projected that the hotel would be able to sustain an annual 70% occupancy rate.
They claimed that the Hilton brand, tied to the Hilton reservation system and rewards program, would do well located near the county complex, the Cape Regional Medical Center campus and the township’s business district.
One obstacle the project must overcome is the need for a zoning change. The property for the proposed hotel is zoned rural conservation. The developers are hoping to have it rezoned as part of the town center.
Arguing that the Design Collaborative was already a business operating on the property, representatives used maps to argue that the property is “adjacent” to the town center but separated from it by the GSP.
They pointed to a Planning Board resolution that supported their argument while asking the governing body to consider the zoning change.
Company projections are that the hotel would have two to 26 full-time, year-round employees, with additional staff during the summer. Since the hotel would not have a restaurant, the developers see benefits for local restaurants as well.
Their overall project was that the hotel would add $2.5 million to the local economy, with the added benefit of an eventual multi-million-dollar hike in the township ratable base.
Provided the company can gain all needed approvals, the development plans call for the hotel to be constructed and operational by spring 2021.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.