Mayor Randy McClement traveled to Baltimore yesterday for Governor O’Malley’s announcement of the State’s Strategic Demolition and Smart Growth Impact Fund awards.
CONTACT: Susan Harding, Public Information Officer, 301-600-1385
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, April 29, 2014
CITY RECEIVES SMART GROWTH IMPACT FUND AWARD FOR DOWNTOWN HOTEL PROJECT
Frederick, MD -- Mayor Randy McClement traveled to Baltimore yesterday for Governor O’Malley’s announcement of the State’s Strategic Demolition and Smart Growth Impact Fund awards. Mayor McClement joined Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development Deputy Secretary Clarence J. Snuggs, and other local officials at the site of the former Old Town Mall in Baltimore as Governor O’Malley announced the projects benefitting from Impact Fund assistance.
The City of Frederick, will receive a total of $350,000 in Smart Growth Impact Funds for costs associated with the proposed Downtown Frederick Hotel & Meeting Space Project. Funds will be allocated for land acquisitions, design, and infrastructure costs associated with the development of a 200 room, full-service hotel with 15,000-20,000 square feet of meeting space, to be constructed in downtown Frederick.
Mayor McClement addressed the crowd as the current President of the Maryland Mayor’s Association. “These funds help not only The City of Frederick, but other cities across the State.”
Regarding the award for Frederick, Mayor McClement said, “We are thrilled to receive this assistance from the Governor’s Smart Growth Impact Fund. This award reinforces the State’s support of the Downtown Hotel Project, and the positive economic impact it will have on the City and the State.”
The Downtown Hotel Project, chaired by local businessman Earl Robbins, is a Public/Private Partnership initiated by the Chamber of Commerce and the local business community and remains a top priority of Mayor McClement’s Administration.
In 2009, a group of community partners and the Major Employers Group of the Frederick County Chamber of Commerce identified a critical need for a downtown hotel and conference center. A feasibility study, conducted in 2010 concluded, “The long-term prospects for the Frederick area are strong and the economy and local lodging market is poised for growth due to the expansion of Fort Detrick, new development of office, retail, and residential space, as well as general employment and population growth.”
A $30 million annual economic impact from jobs and tax revenue is projected from the project as well as an indirect annual impact of approximately $60 million.
For more information on the Downtown Hotel Project, contact The City of Frederick Economic Development Department at 301.600.6360 or visit Downtown Hotel Project.
In addition to the award for Frederick, 12 other projects throughout the state will receive $5 million in assistance from the Impact Fund. These funds are projected to leverage an additional $292 million in public and private investments to support revitalization activities.
Established in 2012, the Strategic Demolition and Smart Growth Impact Fund program is part of the state’s PlanMaryland strategy to accelerate economic revitalization of designated Sustainable Communities through coordinated investment and alignment of public resources to leverage private investment. The program provides grants and loans to local governments and nonprofit community development organizations working in conjunction with private entities to fund capital costs for redevelopment opportunities.
• http://govpics.maryland.gov/ - Additional photos of April 28th SGIF Awards Event will be posted.
#
The Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development works with partners to finance housing opportunities and revitalize great places for Maryland citizens to live, work and prosper. To learn more about DHCD programs, log on http://www.mdhousing.org.
• FY13 SGIF Funding Projects.pdf
--30--
www.cityoffrederick.com