By Betsy Finklea
At the June meeting of the Dillon City Council, Mayor Todd Davis reported that he had met with a hotel group called the Raines Group.
Davis said he, City Manager Glen Wagner, and Code Enforcement Director Benny Genwright met with a manager and an investor for about a one hour 15 minute meeting.
Davis said they were really high on the Dillon Wellness Center. He said they were really excited about the opportunities here – what Dillon has and what they saw.
Davis said the representatives they met with want the city representatives to go to Florence and talk with their city manager. He said they would be glad to, but noted in his comments at the council meeting that Florence is a different demographic than Dillon.
Davis said what struck him was that they were not talking about a lower echelon hotel, but a mid- to upper-tier hotel with 100 rooms. Davis said that they said Marriott is the gold standard for travelers.
Davis said it is on the table. He said the city has got to get their plan together. He said they were not asking for a bunch of incentives. He said the hotel representatives want the city to take pride in the hotel and to support it.
Wagner said one of the things that made an impression on the hotel representatives was that the hospital and some of the local industries already utilize some of their other facilities so they see no reason why they wouldn’t utilize one here.
Councilman Phil Wallace said he was wondering where the best place to locate would be – No. 9 or Hwy. 34. Wagner said No. 9. Davis said this was because of the amenities. He said they want their guests to be able to step out and access restaurants.
Councilman Johnny Eller asked if the hotels in the area are involved. Davis said he had talked to some of them. Davis said he didn’t necessarily think this would hurt the other hotels in the area.
Davis said these representatives see more potential than the feasibility study that the city had done. He said the possibility of the inland port also puts a different component on things.
Wagner said the hotel representatives wanted them to talk with the city of Florence because of some of the creative ways they came up with incentives, but Wagner also noted they were not Florence.
Wagner said that he had given council members a printout of incentives suggested by the Municipal Association for those types of businesses. Some of these included waiving the first two to three years of accommodations tax money or partnering with water and sewer construction. He said not things where it would cost the city any outlay of money. Wagner said they were looking for an olive branch.
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Note: To watch this discussion, view this meeting on www.thedillonherald.com or The Dillon Herald’s channel on YouTube.