Investors sought for new hotel

It took about a year, but now business leaders see the possibility of a downtown Ironton hotel if not on the horizon, at least getting a little closer to happening.

It was in February of 2010 that Ralph Kline, assistant executive director of the Ironton-Lawrence County Community Action Organization, said he hoped to finalize the sale of properties in the Ninth Street area.

Those sales were to The Old Engineer Property LLC, the limited liability company whose job it is to market and sell the property.

Those properties include the former engineer’s garage, a one-time armory and the former group home.

“We have all the core properties required to pull a core project, a hotel, as one targeted investment in the area,” Kline said Thursday. “We have met with developers and investors.”

Local business leaders had a meeting scheduled Thursday with a prospective developer.

“I think it is going forward,” he said. “We needed to make sure we had site control. A hotel was determined to be the number one priority, the number one focus.”

Kline declined to give the names of any potential investors.

“I can’t say until we have a formal agreement,” he said.

Old Engineer Property is comprised of the Ironton and Lawrence County port authorities, the CAO and the Lawrence Economic Development Corp.

“It is moving forward,” Kline said. “At least the hotel portion.”

Right now asbestos testing at the site is under way, with demolition of the existing structures the next step.

“I see this month a contract bid to do demolition,” he said.