WICHITA, Kansas-- You'll find overgrown brush, decaying sidewalks and rotting wood along this stretch of riverbank by the Broadview Hotel, extending from Douglas up to First St. in Wichita.
The majority of the $2.2 million bond up for vote Tuesday would go towards landscaping this property.
"A year or so ago we entered into a contract with Law Kingdon, who is the architectural firm that did the Keeper of the Plains project," said Chris Carrier with the City of Wichita.
If approved, the work would start in the winter or spring and take several months to complete.
Drury Hotels has plans to remodel the Broadview. As part of the plan, Drury would deed a piece of property extending from the hotel down to the river and move the Broadview's entrance to face the Arkansas River. But the project to remodel the hotel itself remains up in the air.
"It's put a hole in our budget between $3.5 million and $4 million," said Jennifer Kornblum, a Drury Hotel spokesperson.
Last year, as a way to save money, the legislature repealed the state's Historic Preservation Tax Credit program. The move has put countless projects all over Wichita and Kansas in jeopardy.
"They had not fully appreciated the impact that action was going to have," said Alan Bell of the City of Wichita. "And that they need to readdress that."
The Broadview restoration was supposed to begin this past August. Now it's on hold until at least January, when legislators re-convene.
The city and Drury are just hoping they re-instate the tax credits.
