- Sasha Goldstein ©️ Seven Days
- Mayor Miro Weinberger at the CityPlace site
The developers — local businessmen Dave Farrington, Al Senecal and Scott Ireland — have brought on Giri Hotel Management, a Quincy, Mass.-based company, as a minority partner. Giri will operate 350 rooms in two hotels.
The altered proposal means the developers will build 350 housing units instead of the 420 or so they initially proposed. Seventy of those homes will be permanently affordable, in keeping with the city's inclusionary zoning rules.
Farrington said "high construction costs, interest rates" and the "shaky lending environment that's going on right now" forced the developers to rejigger their plans for the project, which is expected to cost more than $200 million. He noted that previous iterations of the CityPlace design included a hotel.
"We've always been confident about the project — we're gonna get this done — and now we're feeling better," Farrington said. "We've got some support and help from our new partners."
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The developers had initially partnered with Champlain Housing Trust to build an eight-story, 84-unit tower of affordable homes on the site. But Farrington said the economics of that arrangement did not work out, prompting the developers to include the affordable housing units in the main buildings. Champlain Housing Trust has turned its attention to a new 70-unit project at the massive Cambrian Rise development on North Avenue.
Weinberger hailed the new developments as a critical juncture for the downtown project, which was first proposed in 2014 when the site was still home to the failing Burlington Town Center mall. Since then, the project has been revamped multiple times and sold to new owners. More recently, it's gained momentum.
The changes require city council approval, since they would alter a development agreement between the city and project owners. The changes also include pushing the deadline for completion to mid-2026 instead of the end of 2025. The council is likely to consider the amended agreement on Monday.
Weinberger hailed the new developments as a critical juncture for the downtown project, which was first proposed in 2014 when the site was still home to the failing Burlington Town Center mall. Since then, the project has been revamped multiple times and sold to new owners. More recently, it's gained momentum.
"Today, after years of hard work, adversity and perseverance, we can finally say with confidence that this daring and worthy effort will succeed," Weinberger said. "Behind me stands the largest building ever constructed in the state of Vermont. And one year from now, hundreds of Burlingtonians, workers and visitors will be passing through the front doors of it every day."
Giri’s portfolio includes a few dozen hotels in Maine, Massachusetts and New Hampshire. It also owns the Comfort Inn & Suites in Montpelier.
The company bought, and then later sold, the former YMCA building on College Street. It had proposed to build a hotel there; the new owner is forging ahead with a plan to build about 100 apartments.
Ash Sangani, one of Giri's owners, said the company is "very excited" to be part of the CityPlace project.
The company bought, and then later sold, the former YMCA building on College Street. It had proposed to build a hotel there; the new owner is forging ahead with a plan to build about 100 apartments.
Ash Sangani, one of Giri's owners, said the company is "very excited" to be part of the CityPlace project.
"We thought, this is one of the sites where we can make an impact, a positive impact," he said. "It's like-minded people doing the right thing for the community right now."
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