Lodging near T.F. Green Airport is now just a stone’s throw away.
Developers and politicians will gather at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on June 19 to officially open the Hyatt Place Hotel, the first hotel in Warwick to feature ground-level connection to the airport garage.
From the back of the hotel to the ticket counter is about a 10 minute walk, according to developers, and there will also be a shuttle as well.
The $23.8 million, 120-room project is the first development in a mixed-use, transit-oriented development planned for the sprawling eight acres of land adjacent to the airport and nearby commuter rail station.
“This hotel and its connectivity to the T.F. Green complex will strengthen our airport and the commerce arising from it,” Rhode Island’s Secretary of Commerce Stefan Pryor said in a statement. “It will also make it more attractive for national and international companies to do business in our state, leading to more job growth.”
Developer D’Ambra Construction, which built the hotel in about 13 months, received a number of state incentives to complete the project. Those included a $3.5 million tax increment financing loan, nearly $1.37 million in Rebuild Rhode Island tax credits and a sales and use tax exemption on construction and build-out costs estimated at $345,000.
But during construction, according to an economic impact analysis, the hotel produced 147 jobs, a projected one-time increase of roughly $323,000 in personal income taxes to the state and a one-time increase of nearly $13 million in Rhode Island’s GDP.
Following completion, the project will also generate another 30 jobs for people to run the hotel, roughly $4.6 million in annual statewide economic output and an increase of nearly $3 million in Rhode Island’s annual GDP, according to the impact report.
“The investments we made in the airport have helped prime this area for growth and make it an attractive place to do business,” U.S. Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) said in a statement.
Alongside the airport and new hotel, D’Ambra Construction plans to develop another 540,000 square feet of office space and retail. Michael D’Ambra, founder of the company, said at a recent site visit that he already has the approvals in place and that he hopes to break ground on part of the project before the end of the year.
