Photo provided This image shows development area on Columbus’ west side with the area marked “Site” being the location of the former Clarion Hotel and Conference Center.
A cliche in real estate circles that happens to ring true is that the three most important things about a property are location, location, location.
By that metric at least, it’s hard to beat the former Clarion Hotel and Conference Center site on State Road 46 just east of Interstate 65 as a potential site for commercial development in Columbus.
The site is an island in a sea of commerce. More than 30,000 vehicles drive past the site every day on State Road 46, according to Indiana Department of Transportation traffic count studies, and more than 40,000 pass by on I-65.
So it made sense when The Republic’s Andy East reported last week that Columbus Regional Health, which owns the former Clarion site, confirmed that it was in talks with a development company to sell the 20.7-acre property. CRH in the past had considered developing medical facilities there, but its plans have changed. Its long-term visions now are focused on its City View Plan proposed for several hundred acres of undeveloped agricultural land it owns down the road, closer to downtown and near the State Road 46 intersection with State Road 11.
“We have entered into an offer-to-purchase agreement. Now, we don’t have a signed agreement yet,” CRH spokeswoman Kelsey DeClue told East last week. “…We’ve entered into the offer-to-purchase process with this developer, and as part of that, they are conducting right now their due diligence.”
Our hunch is the developer, Midland Atlantic properties, has at least a working knowledge of what it can make happen at this site, being keenly familiar with the area. Midland Atlantic’s sizable commercial portfolio includes the Columbus Crossing Shops, which houses about a half-dozen retail and service businesses in front of the Walmart location on 46, as well as some larger standalone restaurants on that same stretch.
No formal plans had been submitted to the city as of last week, but, East reported, “A conceptual plan included in the developer’s marketing materials shows four potential lots on the property, including two lots covering roughly a combined 9.74 acres that are listed as potentially ‘mixed use hotel,’ one 2.38-acre lot listed as ‘retail/restaurant’ and one 4.49-acre lot listed as retail.”
The location is enticing, but it is also challenging — most notably due to flooding hazards. Substantial work has been done to raise the property’s elevation since CRH bought it in 2017 and demolished the Clarion. Other plans for the property have come and gone with nothing concrete happening, but it’s clear Midland Atlantic has the wherewithal to see plans through to completion if a deal gets done.
“It’s exciting to see the interest in the property,” DeClue said. “… It’s good, after all the delays that we had with that land, to see this next step kind of starting to take shape.”
We agree. We believe CRH and the community would benefit from responsible development of a prime piece of commercial property that has been vacant for far too long.
