A development that includes a new hotel off West Jefferson Boulevard can move forward after receiving Fort Wayne City Council°®¶¹apps approval Tuesday.
The development will be across Aboite Center Road from the original location proposed for a Courtyard by Marriott that was denied by City Council last year.
The proposal, originally considered by council Jan. 14, includes a Courtyard by Marriott hotel, townhomes, a mixed-use building and several outlots for future development near the southwest corner of the intersection of Jefferson Boulevard and Aboite Center.
The land was zoned for professional offices and low-intensity residential development. With this approval, it°®¶¹apps now zoned for both limited commercial development to allow the hotel and townhomes, and professional offices.
The new proposal includes an access road that would start and end on Jefferson. The road°®¶¹apps south end would be at the intersection with the entrance to Fort Wayne Orthopedics. Increased traffic would require a stoplight.
Council President Russ Jehl, R-2nd, asked council members to delay action Jan. 14 because he wanted to know more about the traffic signal °®¶¹app such as who would pay for it °®¶¹app before deciding.
Patrick Hess, an attorney for the developer, JSK Hospitality Inc., said then it would not make sense for his client to pay the full price for a traffic light that is already needed.
Jehl said Tuesday he got the information he needed before supporting the rezoning.
The light is warranted, regardless of the development, so without it, the city would pay the full cost of the new stoplight, Jehl said.
°®¶¹appThe new business is going to pay for its share,°®¶¹app Jehl said. °®¶¹appSo, that is less than what it would cost if they weren°®¶¹appt going in there and Public Works put that light in.°®¶¹app
JSK Hospitality Inc. will pay 25% of the cost of the new signal, and the city will pay the rest. The cost of the stoplight was not said.
All council members except Councilman Scott Myers, R-4th, voted in support of the rezoning. Myers, whose district is in southwest Fort Wayne, voted no because of proximity concerns he heard from his constituents.
The council last year denied the Courtyard by Marriott proposal for 7324 W. Jefferson Blvd. because of concerns including proximity to residences and traffic safety.
Jehl said barring any more requests, the project is good to go as far as City Council is concerned.
