Two new four-plus story hotels will soon dot the Kyle skyline.
On Tuesday, the Kyle City Council unanimously approved two conditional use permits (CUP) for Marriott Hotels to build two new facilities over 50 and 60 feet tall in Kyle, an effort officials believe could spark economic development.
Contractors for Marriott Hotels requested permission from Kyle’s Planning and Zoning Commission (P&Z) Sept. 11 to build two hotels over the maximum allowed height of 45 feet. The goal of allowing the buildings is to bring more business to Kyle.
“I think this is in line with what the city mayor and the city council have wanted to advocate, which is going vertical. I’m wondering why we have a (height) limit at all for this zoning category.”
–Travis Robinson,
Planning & Zoning commissioner
The hotels are to be located in the 3400 block of Kyle Crossing at Kyle Town Center close to Home Depot; the combined facility will take up more than 12,000 square feet. P&Z recommended for approval by the Kyle City Council, which also approved it by a 6-0 vote.
“I think this is in line with what the city mayor and the city council have wanted to advocate, which is going vertical,” P&Z commissioner Travis Robinson said Sept. 11. “I’m wondering why we have a (height) limit at all for this zoning category.”
The hotels are intended to bring more business to retail areas in Kyle and allow for more tourism. The first hotel will be a four-story Towne Place Suites by Marriott, offering 93 rooms, according to site plans provide to P&Z. The second hotel will be a Springhill Suites by Marriott offering 100 rooms on a four-floor plan with an additional conference space totaling 1,600 square feet.
However, Kyle council member Dex Ellison was concerned about the entrance area to the facility off Kyle Crossing, as the ingress point is narrow and unmarked. He shared a similar concern addressed by P&Z commissioners.
Although the hotels are approved to be built, more decisions could be made on the space surrounding them later.
“The planning and zoning commission will be able to consider that at a later date,” said Howard Koontz, Kyle director of planning and community development. “The only part of the project currently in question is the height.”
According to city documents, the hotels are “to capture commercial opportunities necessary to close Kyle’s tax gap. To achieve this goal, these nodes should draw upon anticipated regional growth and aggregate density to enhance value and activity levels in a concentrated and visible location.”
