The City of Cleveland’s Division of Port Control is seeking to leverage Cleveland Hopkins International Airport as an anchor to draw more development. The City hired a consulting team including Berusch Development Partners, a Chicago-based development advisor, an architect, a cost estimator, and a hotel analyst. The team’s mission is to study the market and financial feasibility for developing a major new hotel adjacent to the main airport terminal, and to work with airport personnel on establishing key planning and design parameters for the facility.

Honing in on the right hotel concept including the optimal number of rooms, brand affiliation, amenities, market segment and price point; determining the best location and orientation on the site relative to existing and future airport infrastructure; and forecasting the hotel’s operating performance and the likely financing gap to be filled with subsidy financing.

The consulting team has analyzed the market potential for new hotel and office space, is working closely with airport staff on design feasibility, and is poised to create a financial model and developer/hotelier solicitation plan for the proposed project.