Indiana

College Football Hall of Fame building to become hotel lobby for new hotel

The former College Football Hall of Fame building will be redeveloped as part of plans to build a new hotel in downtown South Bend.

In an agreement announced Wednesday morning, April 15, JSK Hospitality will pay $1.2 million for the Hall of Fame building, which will serve as the hotel’s lobby, according to a news release from the city of South Bend.

The South Bend Redevelopment Commission will sell a parking lot at the northwest corner of St. Joseph Street and E. Jefferson Boulevard to JSK Hospitality for $1, according to the news release. The lot will be the home of a five-story hotel that will be attached to the former Hall of Fame building and be constructed with matching brick.

The hotel will include 120 guest rooms and ground-floor retail space on St. Joseph Street. 

The gridiron plaza in front of the former Hall of Fame building will be open to the public 30 times a year so long as the city provides JSK Hospitality with at least 60 days notice, according to the news release. The hall’s 5,000-square foot lower level may also be redeveloped into retail space.

JSK Hospitality will invest $10 to $12 million into the project, though it’s unclear if it will seek tax abatements, South Bend Tribune reported. South Bend’s investment is also unknown.

The hotel is expected to open in spring 2017.

“The Common Council’s interest has always been having a tax-paying entity within the former Hall of Fame,” Tim Scott, president of the South Bend Common Council, said in a statement. “More hotel rooms will certainly boost tourism and provide more options for visitors.”

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