TUCSON, Arizona -- The Rio Nuevo Board of Directors took steps this week to advance the development of a hotel and nearby retail and restaurant block in downtown Tucson by unanimously approving the rebating of site-specific sales tax to the developer of a Marriott Moxy Hotel on 5th Avenue and Toole and the “200 Block” of East Congress Street.
Rio Nuevo will rebate sales tax generated both by the hotel and by the new businesses of the “200 Block” to the developers. The Board commissioned an independent economic analysis of the two projects and will review the results before signing off on final approval of the agreements. Approval is also subject to agreement by the City of Tucson.
Scott Stiteler is developing both the Marriott boutique hotel above the Depot Garage just west of Hotel Congress and the “200 Block”. Stiteler is also nearing completion of the AC Marriott Hotel at Broadway and 5th Avenue. Rio Nuevo is rebating sales tax that would have been collected from that project.
“This takes us closer to seeing three major additions to our thriving downtown,” said Rio Nuevo Board Chairman Fletcher McCusker. “We’ll have two innovative hotels within a few blocks of each other and, with a re-energized “200 Block”, there will be a new retail and restaurant center in between them.” The “200 Block” encompasses the south side of Congress Street from 5th Avenue west to Arizona Avenue.
Work cam of the AC Marriott Hotel construction progress can be viewed here.
The creation of the Rio Nuevo Multipurpose Facilities District was approved by Tucson voters in 1999, along with an appointed Board, to invest state tax dollars in public and public/private projects to create a vibrant Tucson core. For every dollar the Board invests, the community reaps $10 of construction activity with projects like the AC Hotel Tucson by Marriott, the Arena, Greyhound, the Mercado Annex, City Park, the Marist project, and Caterpillar. For more information, visit https://rionuevo.org.