Citizens for Balanced Growth has finished our investigation into the development of a Livermore downtown hotel. Bottom line – there is no longer a developer.
Eleven years of planning and outreach have achieved something though. A single person with two shell companies now owns the very valuable downtown real estate which was once under the control of the City. The eventual use of these parcels may be anyone’s guess. Typically, landowners pursue another path when “Plan A” fails. More apartment towers? Retail? Miniature golf? Who can say, but at least for now it’s a perfectly good parking lot.
This month we met with additional senior staff in person, including senior planners and a long employed high level manager. None of them could not identify any ongoing progress or activity. There is no one left for us to ask.
Our investigation also included a direct public outreach component. A 2017 survey revealed that a hotel was desirable, with virtually no opposition. That opinion is no longer as universal. The primary reason for this shift seems to be the controversy in 2022 where the on-site parking was eliminated and a parking lot around the corner and down the street was established. The negative impact on traffic circulation is unwelcome. People expect a hotel to have parking, and some no longer want a hotel for that reason.
No one knows if a future hotel developer will decide to actually build a hotel in the entitled space. One can always hope, but we can’t envision any remedy to the physical and economic challenges of the Council’s chosen site for such a use. With redevelopment complete, Livermore will get the apartment buildings, but we won’t get a hotel.