"Substantial" Interest Group Sells Two Tracts For Hotel, New SSA Office By GREG JUNEK - Business Editor eavy equipment could again move into the Donnybrook South addition, this time to construct a hotel and a new office for the Social Security Administration. Dick Davies announced he and Donnybrook South partner Gary Root sold two parcels of land in the addition behind Broadway Crossing "for development in the next six months." Amounts of the land sales were not disclosed. Davies said development in the new addition is taking off, eight months after he and Root completed the South Donnybrook extension from Rieck Road to South Broadway Avenue. "We didn’t get the road finished and opened until March of this year, and while the road was being built I built the 10,000-square foot Ellis Rehab center, and it opened at the same time as the street did," Davies said. "By then we had two contracts in the works, one of which fell out — it was another hotel. "But we have had a substantial amount of interest in restaurants, hotels and office buildings as well. And the traffic on Donnybrook South has been, as we suspected, pretty significant," he said. Davies said he and Root did not know the amount of the total investment of the hotel and Social Security Administration offices, "but we know it will be substantial. A 2.1-acre tract facing the new South Donnybrook Avenue extension behind Broadway Crossing will be the site of a 15,000-square-foot building that will be the new home for the Social Security Administration Tyler offices, Davies said. The buyer, Curtis Investments Inc. of Dallas, will construct the single-story building. Chris Curtis, vice president and owner of Curtis Investments, said the building will be about 16,600 square feet with about 84 parking spaces. It will have two driveways onto South Donnybrook if the city allows, he said. The company hopes to begin construction in January, pending government approval. Curtis declined to disclose the investment. Mark Patel of Longview purchased the second lot, a 1.5-acre tract facing Rieck Road, and plans to build a 60-room Comfort Suites Hotel in early 2002, Davies said. The three-story hotel will have limited food service with multiple meeting rooms for guests. "The plans are still awaiting approval by the franchiser, and construction should begin in February on it," Davies said. Efforts to reach Patel have been unsuccessful. Stephanie Rollings, Tyler senior planner, said Patel submitted a site plan for the hotel. The Planning and Zoning Commission is scheduled to consider the plan Tuesday, and the City Council is scheduled to consider it Dec. 19. Ms. Rollings said the city had not received a building permit request for the hotel. Davies said the U.S. General Services Administration will contract with Curtis to lease the building for the new Social Security Administration offices for a 10-year period. Several companies submitted bids to purchase property and construct the building. The bidding process started a year ago and award to the contractor that specified the Donnybrook South lot did not occur until May. "There were other sites in Tyler that were considered by GSA," Davies said. "Four bidders had submitted our property as a part of their bid process. Fortunately, Curtis Investments was the winning bidder." Curtis said two major reasons exist for his company’s choice of the area. "It was within the boundaries that they wanted but the main reason was I thought the location was a good long-term area to be in," Curtis said. Although the contract with the GSA calls for the SSA to be in the building 10 years, "it definitely could be there longer," Curtis said. "We own the building, we will own the building throughout the term of the lease and we will work hard to make them happy." SSA offices have generally been found in shopping centers, and the administration is moving toward establishing themselves in stand-alone buildings. "I think their goal is to stay in these locations for quite a while," Curtis said. Leo Rossler, SSA district manager in Tyler, said he looks forward to the offices moving to their new location. The stand-alone aspect will make the building easier to find, he said. The current SSA office occupies about 10,000 square feet in a multiple-tenant building at 212 Grande Blvd. "We’ll be able to have a larger waiting room and provide more space for our clients," Rossler said, adding clients will also have more available parking. © Tyler Morning Telegraph, re-printed with the permission of the Tyler Morning Telegraph back © 2008 Root Homes - All Rights Reserved.