A flurry of behind-the-scenes activity indicates a restart is in the works for a key part of the Creative Corridor in downtown Little Rock. Lawsuits and countersuits surrounding unpaid work on the dormant 125,000-SF Main Street Lofts redevelopment recently were dismissed. The order in Pulaski County Circuit Court alludes to a financial settlement that squared away more than $1.3 million in claims on the three-building project at 510-524 Main St. by Little Rock’s AMR Construction and its subcontractors. A new entity, Deep Creek LR LLC, also became the owner of the former M.M. Cohn Building at 510 Main St. Real estate documents portray the change as a reorganization and an internal shift in ownership, a transaction valued at $2.1 million. Trailing behind this, the lead construction lender, Riverside Bank of Sparkman, released its security interest in the 62,688-SF building. The property secured a 2015 mortgage of $2 million held by the bank. Delinquent property taxes totaling $30,542 for 2012-15 also were paid, tying up another loose end in advance of renewed work on the building or a possible sale. All these developments come two years after activity moved from the construction site to the courthouse when AMR Construction walked off the job in April 2015. AMR received an $896,756 arbitration award that was converted to a judgment last year against the Main Street Lofts ownership group, then led by Scott Reed of Portland, Oregon. According to sources, his role with the project has changed. “I believe that Scott Reed is out of the picture, except he may be consulting with the new group because of his knowledge about the entire project,” said Phil Kaplan, a member of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra’s board of directors. “We made it clear we didn’t want to deal with him.” Will the symphony set up shop in part of the M.M. Cohn Building as originally planned? “The ASO is still very interested in the possibility of becoming a tenant in the building if the terms can be worked out,” Kaplan said. Various parties involved with past workout attempts for Main Street Lofts considered Reed to be the biggest obstacle to getting the project back on track. His removal from the forefront is touted as a leading cause that momentum...
Learn MoreJamal Goss , KTHV LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (KTHV) — New attractions are coming to an already booming part of Little Rock. Otter Creek will soon welcome a brand new hotel and a movie theater that will feature eleven screens, food, and so much more. Groundbreaking has already begun for the new shopping center behind the Outlets of Little Rock, and now construction crews are laying the foundation. Developer Tommy Hodges explained that the soon to be Gateway Shopping Center would be a 24 hour, seven-days-a week entertainment attraction. Hodges is ready for the two new features soon coming to Otter Creek. “It’s really become an entertainment center,” Hodges said. “The movie gallery will be an upscale sort of new type movie where food and beverage will be a part of the deal.” Next to that sits two acres of land for a brand new Hilton hotel. “Hotels will feed restaurants,” Hodges said. “We have some new restaurants coming. Hodges said more than 100,000 cars pass through the area on Interstate 30 every day, and a large number of those people travel back and forth between Pulaski and Saline County. He said it’s the shopping center where they tend to stop and shop and with places like Bass Pro, Dave & Busters, and the stores at the Outlets of Little Rock that will help with creating an entertainment space for Little Rock. “We still have a lot of land,” Hodges said. “So it’s going to grow and develop for the next few years.” Right now 50 acres remain unused, but developers are quickly turning the dirt filled place into a mixed-use space. “A couple of new restaurants are coming,” Hodges said. “I am not at liberty to say who they are, but a couple of new restaurants are coming in, over next to the mall and Bass Pro Shop,” Hodges said it doesn’t stop there, and when developed, the new Gateway Shopping Center will be a 365 days a year hotspot for commuters and Arkansans passing through. “We’ve got a new 10,000 square foot shopping plaza that will be built here behind this fence,” Hodges said. “And construction will start on that in the next few weeks, so we are busy.” Both the hotel and...
Learn MoreHoliday Inn Express Sale Checks In at $5.1 Million (Real Deals) by George Waldon on Monday, Aug. 22, 2016 12:00 am Holiday Inn Express at 4306 E. McCain Blvd. in North Little Rock. (Abigail Fowler) A 69-room hotel in North Little Rock weighed in at $5.15 million. CDRN NLR LLC, led by Ishverbhai Govind, purchased the Holiday Inn Express at 4306 E. McCain Blvd. The seller is Kilpatrick Hotels Two LLC, led by G.T. Kilpatrick. The deal is backed with a three-year loan of $4.4 million from Capital Bank of Little Rock. The 1.5-acre development at 4306 E. McCain Blvd. previously was linked with a September 2014 mortgage of $4 million held by Progressive Bank of Monroe, Louisiana. Kilpatrick bought the property for $6.8 million in June 2008 from McCain Hotels...
Learn Moreby Arkansas Business Staff A Holiday Inn Express in North Little Rock was part of multimillion-dollar transactions this week. ♦ CDRN NLR LLC, led by Ishverbhai Govind, bought the 69-room project at 4306 E. McCain Blvd. for $5.1 million. Seller? Kilpatrick Hotels Two LLC, led by G.T....
Learn More$9M Tru by Hilton Hotel to Open at Gateway Town Center A rendering of the exterior of a model Tru by Hilton hotel. (Hilton) A rendering of the entry into the large lobby of a Tru by Hilton hotel. (Hilton) One of the four sections of a Tru by Hilton hotel lobby, featuring multiple seating options and a buffet bar. (Hilton) A rendering of the double queen room at a Tru by Hilton hotel. (Hilton) by Alexis Hosticka on Friday, Jun. 10, 2016 1:55 pm With entertainment, shopping and restaurants already in the works at The Grove at Gateway Town Center, another piece to the puzzle will be filled in next fall with a $9 million Tru by Hilton hotel. The new brand, with only two in the country so far, is aimed at the “millennial roadside traveler,” according to Shawn Govind, the director of real estate development at Pinnacle Hotel Group. “The common areas are a bit larger and more guest friendly; the guest rooms are smaller than a typical full-service Hilton,” Govind said. “It’s for your price conscientious travelers.” The Tru hotel will be 42,000 SF with 84 units and be the “model property for the state.” Govind said that there are plans for three more Tru hotels in Arkansas but locations for those have not been determined. A private investor group currently owns the property at Gateway Town Center, which was purchased for $12.4 million, and Colliers International of Little Rock is handling the leasing and selling of the land. Govind said the $975,000 transaction for the property should close in mid-July and they plan to break ground before the end of the year. The Tru brand hotel is designed to be “simplified, spirited and grounded in value” and a “mid-scale” brand. It will feature a large lobby called The Hive that includes a redesigned front desk and four zones for lounging, working, eating and playing. The play zone will include amenities such as table games and a large-screen TV; the eating area will provide a complimentary breakfast bar. Rooms are either single king or double queen with “spacious” bathrooms. The goal of the brand is to “capture millions of cross-generational guests” and to fill a market void. The property was...
Learn MoreLITTLE ROCK, AR – APRIL 8, 2016 – Little Rock-based hotel management company Pinnacle Hotel Group opened the doors to their first brand new Holiday Inn Express and Suites in Bryant-Benton, Arkansas. The new 85-room hotel is located off I-30 at 7224 Alcoa Road on exit 121. The hotel boasts all of the conveniences that guests are used to seeing at Holiday Inn Express including complimentary high speed internet access throughout the hotel, business center and pantry which is open 24/7 and hot Express Start Breakfast bar with signature pancake maker! All rooms feature a Keurig Brewer, mini-micro-fridge and 42″ flat-panel HDTV. All conference rooms include equipment needed for your next big meeting and enough space to accommodate up to 150 people for social events. The hotel is conveniently located with easy access to many of Little Rock’s attractions and just a short drive from “Spa City” Hot Springs! About Holiday Inn Express...
Learn More