City Moves Forward With Downtown Water Street Hotel Development

After facing its fair share of obstacles, delays and plenty of revisions, plans for a major downtown Naperville hotel development were moved forward by City Council Tuesday.

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Council members gave approval to staff to prepare ordinances for the 2.4-acre multi-use Water Street District development, which was passed by a 7-2 vote during Tuesday's City Council meeting.

The development will sit south of the Riverwalk between Main and Webster streets and hold a hotel, retail shops, restaurant, office space as well as a parking deck.

The 166-room "boutique" hotel will be named the Naperville Riverwalk Hotel, despite a passionate opposition from Councilman Grant Wehrli.

“'Thou shalt not name anything Riverwalk' to me should be in the ordinance," said Wehrli, who was one of the dissenting votes along with Councilman Doug Krause. "The city has worked hard with blood, sweat and tears to get that Riverwalk where it is; I don’t want to see anybody commercializing it with a name of 'Riverwalk' anything.” 

While nixing the "Riverwalk" name from the development didn't make it into the ordinances, City Council members did vote to approve a total of 524 spaces within the parking deck.

The project has been tweaked and revised numerous times during the last several months, but the developer, Marquette Companies, presented its final plans to City Council members Tuesday night.

“This process has been lengthy, but we believe the result before you tonight is truly an ideal realization of the city’s Water Street vision statement,” said Marquette Companies director Jeff Prosapio.

The hotel will still sit at five stories and have a height of 61 feet, with a 69-foot architectural element. The Loggia Building, located north of the hotel, connected by an elevated pedestrian bridge, is also the same height.

Along with retail and commercial space, the Loggia Building will hold a rooftop restaurant overlooking the DuPage River.

In January, hundreds of people gathered to get a look at revisions when Marquette Companies held an open house at Naper Settlement's Pre-Emption House.

During the open house, a majority of residents who provided feedback expressed their support for the project, Proscapio said.

“Of the 80 written comment cards we received, over 70 percent were in favor of the revisions and the development overall,” he said.

City Manager Doug Krieger acknowledged that the property is within a tax increment financing (TIF) district, but no discussion was held regarding how those funds could be used.

“At this point in time we have no agreement with the developer surrounding any of the financial matters including the TIF; that will be a matter for future public discussion,” Krieger said.

Shortly after the vote Tuesday, Naperville's business community issued its reaction to the city's approval of the development.

“Projects like the Water Street District are a rare generational opportunity for the entire community," said Naperville Chamber of Commerce CEO Mike Evans  in a statement. "This was a momentous decision in the history of Naperville, and will make a positive difference in the growth and vitality of Naperville’s economy."

Earlier: 

New Revisions for Downtown Water Street Hotel Project

Changes Made to 'Game-Changing' Naperville Water Street Project

What's your reaction to Tuesday's vote?