Citing economic setbacks caused by the coronavirus pandemic, developers of the the proposed Virgin Hotel in downtown Palm Springs have "postponed" the project, city staff said during Thursday's Palm Springs City Council meeting.
As a result, the hotel could be replaced with a 62-unit condominium complex, officials said.
"Grit Development and the Virgin Hotel developer have mutually agreed to postpone the project due to COVID-19 impacts on the national economy and on the hospitality industry specifically," Assistant City Manager Marcus Fuller told council members.
They "mutually have agreed to replace this existing hotel plans on that site with a residential project that will energize the downtown project," he said.
On Tuesday, the city's Architectural Advisory Committee reviewed the proposed 62-unit development on that site. The project shares the same architect behind the Kimpton Rowan Palm Springs hotel, Fuller said.
"Because it's in the downtown specific plan, the City Council will actually review and approve this as a final action," Fuller said.
The development site is 0.84 acres and is bound by Andreas Road, Belardo Road and Museum Way.
"The residential building is 82,862-square feet in area and includes 62 condominium units (a reduction in scope from the 112,862-square feet, 142-room Virgin Hotel)," according to a staff report from Tuesday's meeting. "The building is six stories and 60 feet in height."
City staff recommended the committee recommend approval to the Planning Commission.
In an April 14 letter to the city, Grit Development's Michael Braun wrote his company believes downtown "is now ready for a high-end multi-family condominium building to support local retail and restaurants in the downtown core."
"America's 77 million baby boomers are getting ready to move and they want to live in an active and cultural interesting place with a warm climate," he wrote. "The targeted demographic are baby boomers with high disposable income looking to downsize from their big homes and permanently relocate to Palm Springs."
He later went onto say the "current health crisis has painfully disclosed the risk of urban living in the big city."
"While additional hotel rooms bring many weekend visitors to downtown, additional residents with high disposable income will add more vibrancy not only during the weekend, but every day of the year to our downtown," he later wrote.
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Shane Newell covers breaking news and the western Coachella Valley cities of Palm Springs, Cathedral City and Desert Hot Springs. He can be reached at shane.newell@desertsun.com, 760-778-4649 or on Twitter at @journoshane.
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Palm Springs' Virgin Hotel 'postponed' due to COVID-19, could be replaced with condos, city says - Desert Sun
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