Hyatt Place in the works in Greenwood

<p>A new high-end, extended-stay hotel could be coming to Greenwood next year.</p><p>A five-story, 171-room Hyatt Place hotel is in the works on the north side of the city, near County Line Road and Emerson Avenue, directly north of a 180-unit apartment complex that was approved by the city last fall. But city officials say there’s a holdup because Hyatt’s brand is undergoing some extensive design changes right now.</p><p>MHG Hotels, LLC, an Indianapolis-based hotel management and development firm, first introduced the project to city officials earlier this year as SpringHill Suites, a Marriott brand, said Bill Peeples, Greenwood’s planning director. It would have been a four-story, 107-room hotel.</p><p>“It’s causing a little bit of a problem because the brand they switched to (Hyatt) is starting to rebrand all of its hotels. A lot of the architecture is conceptual, so there’s no way of knowing what it will actually look like,” Peeples said.</p><p>“From our standpoint, if we could get actual architectural designs, we could get approval.”</p><p>The city has not been given a timeline as to when construction would begin or when the hotel would open.</p><p>“It was almost ready to go in the spring, and then they backed out,” Peeples said.</p><p>At that time, the hotel would have taken about eight months to build, he said.</p><p>There is a need for more hotels in Johnson County, especially higher-end, extended-stay hotels like this one, said Shayla Pulliam, Greenwood’s economic development director.</p><p>With a growing number of companies in the area, traveling business executives from around the world need a place to stay when they come to town, she said.</p><p>What city officials don’t want is cheaper motels that become more like apartments for a lot of people, they said.</p><p>“That’s not necessarily always associated with extended-stays, but it is something that we see. Even local families, if they’re renovating their home, we need something like this for them to stay in,” Pulliam said.</p><p>“Having that outlet for them is great as long as it’s well maintained. There is certainly a demand for it.”</p><p>Johnson County has eight hotels with a total of 740 rooms. Last year, the occupancy rate in 10 Johnson County hotels was 71.4 percent, above the 70 percent threshold that generally indicates to developers that there is a need for more hotels. Five other hotels are currently in the works — some being constructed, others being planned — throughout the county.</p><p>“What I can say is their team is working hard and our team is working hard. We’re confident the project is moving along and will be a huge success if it is approved,” Pulliam said.</p><p>“They’re updating their look to make sure they’re being more current and competitive in today’s market.”</p>