ROCKY MOUNT, Va. – A new plan is on the table that could entice developers to Rocky Mount. The town is looking at possible tax credits for people to help revitalize downtown. There are already some takers for the plan, including a proposed boutique hotel across from the Harvester Performance Center.
It's a far cry from where it wants to be, but downtown Rocky Mount is making great strides. The town rolled the dice, betting on the Harvester Performance Center, and the gamble is paying off with a boost of positive economic activity.
Recommended Videos
"We've had a bed and breakfast open, a restaurant open, our meals taxes have increased exponentially," Rocky Mount Mayor Steve Angle said. "So it works well with what's going on in Rocky Mount."
The town is looking at creating tax credits for development in the blocks immediately around the Harvester to help transform the landscape. Philip Bane is a Roanoke-based developer and is interested in using the credits. He asked the town for a special use permit to build a small hotel and restaurant at a former furniture store right up the street from the music venue.
"It's a great logical thing for people to be able to leave their hotel, go and enjoy a meal and then walk to the Harvester and see a great show," Harvester CEO and Rocky Mount Assistant Town Administrator Matthew Hankins said.
Bane's plan and request for a special use permit was well-received by the council Monday night, although they did put a condition on their approval of the permit. Bane must submit conceptual plans for the project in the next six months and that plan must receive staff approval.
The proposed hotel would add up to 20 rooms on the second and third floors of the building and an all-day restaurant on the first floor. The plan would add a new option to the growing list of restaurants and places to stay downtown, something the Harvester said is needed. It wants to be able to market itself and the neighborhood around it as a great place to be.
"There are other places that do have a great personal, non-chain type touch, and we think that's a great thing for people," Hankins said. "It gives them options. Not everyone wants to stay in your standard, regular, 140 square-foot hotel room."
The Harvester is pulling in the people for its shows; it's just putting those heads in beds somewhere else, like Roanoke or Martinsville. Town leaders want those people staying longer and spending more in Rocky Mount.
"We want Rocky Mount, and it has become a destination for people," Angle said. "That's very important that we continue that."