Brooklyn Park Gives Initial OK to New Hotel Along Highway 610
The Brooklyn Park City Council gave initial approval to a rezoning and development plan that would allow future construction of a hotel along Highway 610. The proposal by SOTA Partners LLC would construct a 4-story WoodSpring Suites Hotel.
The precise site is a vacant piece of land within the Northcross Business Park at 610 and Winnetka Avenue North. The site had been intended for office or hotel use in the future, said Cindy Sherman, Brooklyn Park’s planning director. “The future is now,” she said.
WoodSpring Suites is an extended-stay hotel that provide features unavailable at standard hotels. They typically have self-serve laundry facilities, kitchens and offer discounts for extended stays, beginning at five or seven days.
There are three businesses currently next door to the proposed hotel: Würth Adams Nut and Bolt Co.; Nilfisk, a supplier of professional cleaning equipment; and Tesla, the electric vehicle maker.
Hotel Plan Requires Zoning Change
The site originally was zoned for a business park in 2014, but was changed to the transit-oriented development zoning designation in 2018 to accommodate a possible future light rail station nearby. On Monday, the city council unanimously approved changing the zoning back to business park because the developer had problems configuring the site to meet setback requirements. Brooklyn Park City Council member Mark Mata was glad to see the zoning change back to business park.
“I thought it stifled some things with a railway that’s not even here,” said Mata at Monday’s meeting.
The city council is expected to give final approval to the zoning change and development plan at its Sept. 28 meeting.