Threefoot sold

Published 10:15 pm Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Hotel to boast 120 rooms

    The Meridian City Council received a standing ovation Tuesday evening after approving the sale of the historic, downtown Threefoot Building to Ascent Hospitality Management, LLC.

    Ascent Hospitality Management, which recently built and opened the Fairfield Inn & Suites off U.S. Highway 11/80, has agreed to purchase the 16-story building to develop a Courtyard by Marriott hotel of at least 120 rooms.

    “I believe this is the most important building downtown,” Ascent Hospitality Management President John Tampa told council members at their Tuesday meeting. “If you start with downtown Meridian you have to start with this building. This is going to take downtown to the next level. It will be a Courtyard by Marriott. This is designated as an upscale, for-business hotel. But we are going to be able to retain the name of Threefoot. It’ll be called Courtyard by Marriott/Threefoot.”

    Meridian Mayor Percy Bland called the coming development a “game-changer.”

    “To have a Courtyard by Marriott at the Threefoot Building in downtown Meridian is going to transcend the entire area,” Bland said.

    “It’s something we’ve been working on for the past two or three months and finally got it here,” Council President Randy Hammon said.

    Tampa said construction will take about 14 to 18 months. Ascent Hospitality is committed to spending at least $14 million to renovate the building, he added.

    A grassroots group called the Threefoot Preservation Society has been working under the direction of Amos Jones to preserve the historic building.

    “It means a great deal,” Jones said, choking up. “We’ve been working so hard. This is all we ever wanted.”

    Ward 2 Councilman Dustin Markham called the decision to sell the building “historic.”

    “I hope the Threefoot Building will be as grand as it once was,” Markham said.

    Ascent Hospitality is a hotel development and management company based in Buford, Ga. The company’s development and management expertise covers a range of hotels from limited service, extended-stay, historic-boutique to full-service hotels, according to the company’s website.

    According to a memorandum of understanding between the city and Ascent, key points of the purchase are:

    • Ascent will purchase the Threefoot Building for $10,000 cash and the city will convey the property by Quitclaim Deed in “as-is” condition.

    • Ascent will begin construction and renovation no later than 12 months after acquiring ownership of the property, provided necessary approvals have been obtained from all historic preservation entities, otherwise, title and control of the property will revert back to the city.

    • The city will accommodate 80 parking spaces (from 6 p.m. to 8 a.m.) in the city owned parking garage, which Ascent will lease for an initial term of 10 years for $2,000 a month, with a 2 percent annual increase. Ascent will have the option to renew or extend the lease for an additional 10-year period. The parking lease shall include the usual and customary terms for parking leases.

    • Provided it is allowed by state law, the city will grant a property tax exemption (except taxes for school district purpose) for a period of seven years upon completion of the development.

    • The city will improve lighting, sidewalk, landscaping around the property site to accommodate valet access for the hotel, matching the area for the Mississippi State University Riley Center.

    • The city will make utilities available to the property with no tap fees to the building.

    • Ascent will be responsible for filing and shall submit all necessary applications with state and federal historical preservation agencies, commissions, or departments to permit construction and renovation to be undertaken. The construction and renovation shall comply with all applicable state and federal building requirements.

    About Threefoot

    The historic building has dominated Meridian’s skyline since the 1930s. When completed in 1930, the 16-story building was the tallest in Mississippi.

    “Since it was built, Meridian and Jackson are the only two cities that have had a recognized skyline in Mississippi,” said former Meridian Mayor John Robert Smith, who tried to finalize a deal with HRI Properties, the same firm that renovated the King Edward Hotel in downtown Jackson.

    The Threefoot Building and Jackson’s Standard Life Building had the same architect, C.H. Lindsey of Jackson, along with Frank Fort of Meridian.

    The Threefoot family constructed the building to house and operate its Threefoot Brothers Wholesale Company. It also housed Threefoot Realty and a number of smaller businesses, along with doctor and business offices during the 1940s-1960s.

    As the city moved toward Interstate 20/59, tenants began leaving the offices in the building. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979 and designated a Mississippi Landmark in 2008.