April 18, 2019
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
BEAUFORT – The Town of Beaufort and Joe Thomas of Beaufort Partners, LLC are pleased to announce the Beaufort, N.C. Compass Hotel project.
The Town is looking forward to working with Joe Thomas as the project progresses.
“We are really excited about this development. It brings a new dimension to the Town of Beaufort,” said Joe Thomas. “The Town was recently named the Best Small Town in the South, and we are proud to be a part of it! The hotel is a very important part of the future of Beaufort - it will allow people to not just come to Beaufort, but to actually stay in Beaufort.”
Mayor Rett Newton said, “This project is great for the Town of Beaufort as we expand economic development along Cedar Street – it will serve as a catalyst throughout the community”
“This is a significant investment that will help the Town in many ways,” said Town Manager John Day.
Day explained the project will not only provide an increase to the tax base and provide additional employment, but the hotel will be a significant utility user.
“This is important to the Town and will help stabilize utility rates,” Day said.
Thomas and his design team sought the public’s input during a design charrette on April 3, 2019. The charrette was well attended. During the charrette, they presented initial plans for the hotel and sought public feedback. This was not a requirement as the Town does not require a design review.
“I appreciate the transparency of this process and the input from the citizens and business leaders as well as Mr. Thomas’ willingness to listen to the community,” said Mayor Newton. “He (Thomas) has proven that he wants to be a good neighbor and this will be a great addition for the Town of Beaufort.”
“We always want to work with the local citizens and get their comments,” Thomas said. “It is an important part of the process.”
Based on the public input received, the development team reviewed the ideas and have decided to build a hotel within the existing zoning standards. The building height will be 40’.
“The Town has done a terrific job over the last few years to support and improve the economy in Beaufort, making an investment like ours possible and profitable,” Thomas said. “There is a terrific administration which encourages good development for Beaufort. We feel that our project will make Beaufort a better place to live and the hotel will complement the tourist trade and be a benefit to visitors and residents alike.”
The following items are the next steps in the review process for the Hotel to go vertical:
- Property owner submits a complete site plan for review by Town staff of all infrastructure plans to include site layout, storm water, utilities, parking, landscaping, buffering, trash, fire connections, and access points. The process does not include review of structure design, materials, or colors, as these elements are not regulated.
- While the site plan is being reviewed by town staff, the applicant will apply for all required State and Federal issued permits, which include storm water and a revision to an existing Major CAMA Permit. Since the site is in a National Historic District, there must also be a review performed by the NC Department of Cultural Resources.
- Once town staff has determined that the site plan meets Town zoning and development standards, the site plan will be sent to the Planning Board, where it will also review the site plan for conformance with town standards. The Planning Board will then make a determination that the site plan either meets, or does not meet Town standards, and this determination will be forwarded to the Board of Commissioners for consideration.
- After receiving the review from the Planning Board, the Board of Commissioners will provide another review of the site plan for conformance with town zoning and development standards. If the Board of Commissioners finds that the site plan is in conformance, then the property owner will submit an application for a Certificate of Appropriateness (COA) to the Historic Preservation Commission for review of the parking area on the south side of Cedar Street, which is in the Beaufort Historic District. The parking lot design must meet the buffering and design guidelines supporting the Historic District.
- Once final construction plans are completed, they will be submitted for review and approval to the NC Department of Insurance (DOI). Construction plans will be reviewed by DOI rather than the Town building inspector because state regulations require that DOI review structures with more than 99 guest rooms.
- Once the COA has been issued and the building construction plans have been approved by DOI, and all other State and Federal permits have been acquired, then a building permit can be issued by the Town and construction can begin.
For more information, contact Rachel Johnson, Town of Beaufort Public Information Officer, at r.johnson [at] beaufortnc.org or (252) 728-2141 ext. 231.