THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, August 7, 1994 TAG: 9408050236
SECTION: PORTSMOUTH CURRENTS PAGE: 06 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Editorial
LENGTH: Short : 31 lines
Should the city go into the convention hotel business in the unfinished Kings Crossing building on the downtown waterfront?
Portsmouth citizens attending a forum last Wednesday at City Hall were enthusiastic about the idea.
The building, now owned by Portsmouth Redevelopment and Housing Authority, was purchased from the federal Resolution Trust Company after developers went bankrupt. PRHA borrowed money to buy the property and hoped to sell it to another developer who would adhere to the city's zoning and design requirements.
Since that hasn't happened, PRHA is looking at a private-public partnership to finish the building as condominiums. The citizen group liked instead the idea of finishing the building as a convention hotel.
At this time, Portsmouth tourism programs are sending people to stay in Norfolk. Why not turn Kings Crossing into a convention hotel and contract it out to a management company firm?
That empty, unfinished building on the city's most valuable property does not send the right message to the public. It's time to act. by CNB