YOW Alt Hotel [1085 Airport Pkwy] | ?m | 7f | Completed

[DTcrawler]

Glad to see it going ahead as well however I can't help but wonder if the slightly reduced scale (one storey removed, 8% smaller footprint overall) has to do with the loss of the CIP grant.

For me, it's not so much that the project went ahead anyway without the grant. It's more about the signal it sends to companies looking to bring investment and amenities to our city when they are met with hostility - especially in this case when the hotel group simply applied under a grant program that was already been approved and created. Do we not care about doing everything possible to help our airport build itself up, especially after the pandemic? Other cities are offering subsides to attract new routes - we're not. So instead, we created the CIP as an alternate means to help, and then pass on following through with that as well.

In this gov-oriented city, where salaries are paid via tax-funded revenues, people tend to over-vilify private industry. Yes, they are looking to make a profit, but that doesn't always have to be a bad thing if residents have access to more choice, more amenities. Being business-friendly isn't a bad thing.