City of Somerville is trying to sell Day-Herbert parking lot to a hotel developer

[ron_newman]

The City of Somerville is taking bids from hotel developers to buy the public metered parking lot at Day and Herbert Streets, where a weekly farmers' market now operates every Wednesday from mid-May through late November.

As far as I can tell, the city has established no public process whatsoever to involve the neighborhood. They are holding a "pre-bidder's conference" on Tuesday, January 15 at 11 am at the northeast corner of the parking lot. They have not advertised the meeting at all to local residents, but it's open to the public. I urge any interested neighbors to show up and make clear that the city needs to include us in the land disposition process.

I found these two documents on the city web site:
Request for Proposals RFP #13-53: Davis Square Hotel Project
Legal Notice: RFP #13-53 = Davis Square Hotel Project

Also, here's an earlier City of Somerville page about a Davis Square Hotel, from when the city last tried to interest hotel developers in 2009. This page includes a Hotel Demand Study written in 2007.

[My own personal position: this could be good for Davis Square, but it needs to be designed sensitively, not tower over the rest of the neighborhood, and not present a blank wall to either Day or Herbert street. It's also essential to find a new nearby location for the farmers' market.]

ETA: An earlier discussion of this topic from February 2007.

Comments

[smacaski.livejournal.com]

The RFP cites a "lodging study" that analyzes the viability of hotels for certain areas of the city. Go here (http://www.somervillema.gov/departments/ospcd/economic-development), then click on “Economic Development” under “Projects” in the right hand column to download the study.

If you check out the Somerville Open Bids page (http://www.somervillema.gov/departments/finance/purchasing/bids), you'll notice there's also another open RFP for purchase and development of the former Powderhouse Community School. One of the options for development is also for a hotel. I think Somerville--and in particular the Davis/Tufts area--could use more hotel space, although I don't think plunking it in the middle of Davis is the best idea, for the reasons others have cited above. The Powderhouse school might be a better option, although it feels a little out of place to me being in an almost entirely residential neighborhood.

[ron_newman]

If I were a potential hotel guest, I'd much rather stay in a hotel two short blocks from a T station, instead of 1/2 mile away requiring me to navigate unfamiliar residential side streets.

[smacaski.livejournal.com]

True; however, I believe the lodging study also notes how a nearby hotel could also serve the Tufts community (parents staying in town for Parents' Weekend, graduation, etc.), so a hotel closer to the campus could serve both purposes.

The Powderhouse RFP also cites the importance of maintaining between Broadway and Holland via schoolyard and Tufts Administration building parking lot, which would certainly help out-of-towners navigate getting into Davis better.