REDMOND, OR -- Renovations on the New Redmond Hotel have been delayed, and the city’s Urban Renewal Agency is now working up a new agreement with the developer to help cover mounting costs. Mayor George Endicott says the developer admitted to City Council this week he was not prepared for what he found in the 90-year-old building when the project began last spring, "For example, he thought, since it had been an operating building 20 years ago, the plumbing was probably okay; well, it’s not. He thought that the electrical was probably okay; well, it’s not. He thought the sprinkler system was okay; it’s not," Endicott tells KBND News, "He just made some incorrect assumptions."

The city is prepared to offer the developer more money than initially planned, up to $3.53 million. The money would come from the Urban Renewal Fund and would come in the form of loans. Mayor Endicott says through the tentative deal, $800,000 would have to be paid back, while the rest would be forgiven if the developer follows through on certain promises, "The developer agreed in principle to move the guarantee of that building staying as a hotel from 10 years to 30 years." The city's contribution would account for about a third of the overall price tag for the project, now around $10 million. 

Partnership Aims to Reopen New Redmond Hotel (12/13/2017)

While the city is ponying up more money, Endicott says it's important to preserve the downtown building, "There are certain things that are just iconic to a community that define and identify the community and you should not let them go. The hotel is one of those." He compares it to renovation work that converted the former Evergreen Elementary into City Hall. The Mayor says this is the best chance to restore the hotel to its original glory, "This is probably the third person who’s come in – maybe the fourth, to try and figure out a way to restore that building. He has agreed to put more money into it than anyone else. He’s committing to finishing the rooftop bar next summer. And the rooms, he said, his goal is early in the fall but no later than a year from now."

The new deal should be finalized before the end of the year.