Plans for a high-rise Cambria Suites hotel that would take over an L-shaped parking lot on Tchoupitoulas and Commerce Streets in the Warehouse District is the newest Height Fight issue to hit the development scene. The proposal calls for a 178-room hotel made up of two buildings: a 65-foot structure that would face 632 Tchoup and a 75-footer with an entrance on Commerce Street. The 75-foot part of the plans, scaled back from its original try for 95-feet, would require a waiver since height limits in this part of town cap out at 65-feet.
The project already got the thumbs-down from the City Planning Commission, who said the hotel, in its current form, would "diminish the historic character of the area and set a precedent for other potential developments," The Advocate reports. A new group, Residents for Responsible Development, aren't fans of the proposal either and are peeved that it doesn't honor the city's master plan.
The development plans are headed to City Council Thursday (July 10) and Councilwoman LaToya Cantrell, whose district covers this site, has yet to announce her official stance. Fillmore Hospitality, an Ohio-based company that runs the show at the Maison Dupuy Hotel in the Quarter, is under contract to buy the property from local hotelier Warren Reuther, who isn't involved with the Cambria plans but called them, "a little thing" that's "going to be beautiful."
· City Council to decide on Warehouse District hotel proposal [Advocate]