![\"Hotel](\"https:\/\/sduptownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/Lafayette2.jpg\" "\\"Lafayette2\\"")
<\/a>A $4 million refurbishment of the historic Lafayette Hotel in North Park began last week and is expected to conclude by the end of the year.<\/p>\nThe El Cajon Boulevard icon \u2013 built in 1946 and a former haunt of celebrities such as Bob Hope, Lana Turner, Ava Gardner and Betty Grable \u2013 will receive a top-to-bottom remodel, including a return to its original pale blue exterior with a red roof. Funding for the project is coming from a $2.45 million forgivable loan from the City of San Diego Redevelopment Agency with the remaining $1.65 million from JCG Development, the property\u2019s owner.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will not just be offering a stay, but an experience,\u201d said Jay Wentz, principal of JCG Development and Hampstead Lafayette, which bought the hotel in 2004 for $11 million. \u201cWe will remember it as a community treasure and treat it accordingly.\u201d<\/p>\n
Although the Lafayette is valued at more than $12 million, Hampstead Lafayette\u2019s mortgage is more than $13 million. Occupancy at the 131-room property recently fell to an all-time average low of 57 percent with a typical room rate of $68, compared to an 80 percent average occupancy rate and $180 average room rate for San Diego hotels overall.<\/p>\n
Wentz said the overhaul will increase both the hotel\u2019s occupancy rate and its ability to charge higher room rates. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re in the valley; we\u2019re slowly going to climb out,\u201d he said, estimating the Lafayette\u2019s rooms will go for $125 nightly once the renovations are complete. \u201cThis is not going to be a luxury hotel but a very well run, very welcoming place for both guests and the community.\u201d<\/p>\n
In its heyday a luxury playground for Hollywood\u2019s glamorous set, the Lafayette gradually fell into disuse and disrepair as hotels cropped up in Mission Valley, downtown and the beaches. By the mid-\u201990s, Father Joe Carroll was proposing the Lafayette as a new homeless shelter but the transition never materialized due to lack of community support.<\/p>\n
When Wentz, an affordable-housing developer, acquired the property six years ago, his plan was not to produce a remodeled hotel. Instead, he sought to build 271 condominiums on the site with 20 percent as affordable-housing units. When that project met with community resistance due to its proposed height, he suggested a 110-unit development that found backing in the community \u2013 and then the economy took a downturn, prohibiting construction due to cost.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we were left with a hotel with wonderful bones but in deep need of an extreme makeover, yet we had to spend more and more money to keep it alive. So we decided to go to Redevelopment because we knew a better hotel would feed a lot of businesses in the area and increase TOT (transient occupancy tax) revenues to the city. It just made sense,\u201d Wentz said. <\/p>\n
Michael Lengyel, project manager for the Redevelopment Agency, said the Lafayette first sought a Mills Act reduction \u2013 a city historical designation that reduces property taxes.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut if we halved their value we also would have halved their property taxes, which ends up hurting revenues,\u201d Lengyel said. <\/p>\n
Instead, the agency recommended Wentz apply for a forgivable loan. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf the hotel does better and increases rates, it generates more TOT taxes,\u201d Lengyel said. \u201cPlus the community gets to maintain this historic asset.\u201d<\/p>\n
North Park\u2019s Project Area Committee (PAC) \u2013 a volunteer group that advises the city on neighborhood redevelopment projects \u2013 approved a $3.25 million loan for the Lafayette. The total was reduced to $2.45 million last year when the state dipped into city redevelopment funds to help alleviate the budget deficit. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey don\u2019t get the money until they finish the project,\u201d Lengyl said, acknowledging the hotel\u2019s debt ratio was a concern in granting the funds. \u201cSo they will be motivated to get the project done.\u201d<\/p>\n
Toni Atkins, the District 3 councilmember when Wentz bought the property and a vocal opponent to his original condominium plan due to its height, said the city\u2019s investment is sound because North Park and University Heights residents will allow nothing less.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe history of this hotel with the community is long and deep. The community sort of owns it, if not on paper,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s an emotional attachment. So I trust the community totally on this one \u2013 I have no doubt the people will assure that this gets done and gets done right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Wentz, who lives in North County, said he intends to honor that community spirit by creating an \u201centertainment hub and lifestyle destination\u201d for residents as well as hotel guests. The Red Fox Room will remain as-is, but a second restaurant will be added, plus an Internet coffee caf\u00e9 and an outside grill. Wentz said he anticipates offering jazz in the Mississippi ballroom, summer poolside movies, weekend brunches and other activities locals can enjoy, all arranged by the hotel\u2019s new \u201centertainment\/vibe\u201d manager. About 30 more jobs will also result from the restoration, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis project satisfies a number of needs,\u201d said District 3 Councilmember Todd Gloria. \u201cNot only does it preserve a valuable historic resource, it invigorates an area where we haven\u2019t done a great deal of redevelopment along El Cajon Boulevard. New businesses will be attracted to that, and a new demographic that isn\u2019t currently occupying the hotel. What you have is an incredible return on investment.\u201d<\/p>\n
Infrastructure improvements will eat much of the $4 million \u2013 Wentz admitted he will need to \u201cstretch dollars as far as [he] can\u201d \u2013 such as a new roof, new windows, an improved HVAC system and repair of the terrazzo tile pool designed by Johnny Weissmuller of \u201cTarzan\u201d fame. But individual rooms will also be upgraded with wall-mounted plasma TVs, Wi-Fi, high-quality bedding and \u201curban chic\u201d furniture.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to preserve the charm \u2013 this hotel already has such character in its rooms and common areas,\u201d he said. \u201cEven outside \u2013 where do you see anything that looks like this in San Diego anywhere but here? This place is gorgeous. We are very, very excited about its wow factor.\u201d<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Christy Scannell SDUN Editor A $4 million refurbishment of the historic Lafayette Hotel in North Park began last week and is expected to conclude by the end of the year. The El Cajon Boulevard icon \u2013 built in 1946 and a former haunt of celebrities such as Bob Hope, Lana Turner, Ava Gardner and […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1287,"featured_media":243388,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"Hotel revamp accents glamorous past","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-243387","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243387","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1287"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243387"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243387\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/243388"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243387"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243387"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243387"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}