CRAINSCLEVELAND.COM I MARCH 11, 2024
Closed hotels offer sweet opportunity in sour situation Shuttered by COVID, some properties could bring redevelopment By Stan Bullard
MAKING IT WORK
Teamwork and collaboration can be difficult but are essential to helping the region achieve its priorities PAGE 7
An oft-repeated joke among Northeast Ohio hotel owners and managers is that it's not an overbuilt market, it's an underdemolished one. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, though, that may no longer be true. A study of the ClevelandAkron hospitality business by David Sangree, president of Hotel & Leisure Advisors of Lakewood, shows that 15 area hotels, with about 2,105 rooms, have closed or been demolished since the pandemic began. Some may reopen if a new owner buys the site. However, financing is hard to swing, and there is competition from other
types of projects for the best locations. Using data from STR, the main data source for hotel operators, and CoStar online realty data, Sangree sees a sweet opportunity in the sour situation. “This shows there may be room to develop more hotels and add new product to the market,” Sangree said. The list ranges from tiny properties on the edges of the market to some big ones near the center of town. A landmark property that has been closed since the pandemic hit is Quail Hollow Resort in Concord Township. The 176room hotel and its event center are the subject of a consulting study that the Concord/Painesville Joint Economic Development District (JEDD) is in the process of commissioning to plumb the 13-acre property’s next use. See HOTELS on Page 16
Notre Dame College student-athletes face tough choices School is set to close at the end of the semester PHOTOS BY KEN BLAZE, GUS CHAN AND CLEVELAND METROPARKS
By Joe Scalzo
Last week, when Lake Erie College (LEC) football coach David Price heard that Notre Dame College (NDC) would close at the end of the semester, his first reaction was, “That whole situation stinks.” “The (football) coaching staff over there, those guys are friends,” said Price. “They’ve had a heck of a program there for so long. “For it to be ending, the biggest thought in our mind was, ‘How can we help?’” VOL. 45, NO. 10 l COPYRIGHT 2024 CRAIN COMMUNICATIONS INC. l ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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That’s a question facing a lot of Northeast Ohio schools, many of which have promised guaranteed admission to many NDC students to pursue their degrees, with comparable net tuition and transfer of all credits as part of the Teach-Out program. But for athletes, the transfer decision can be trickier. Student-athletes make up about 70% of NDC’s enrollment, and many of them will have to decide between a school that is a great academic and/or cultural fit, and one that offers the best chance for playing time or team success. See ATHLETES on Page 16
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