French Quarter Suites to be Rebranded as Comfort Suites; Plans Move Forward for New Biotech Building at STCC

By Amalia Otet, Associate Editor

The French Quarter Suites at Overton Square in midtown is under contract to be purchased by two local businessmen, Rishi Chopra and Jay Kumar, who plan to renovate the vacant facility and brand the new hotel as a Comfort Suites, a member of Choice Hotels.

The developers plan to pay about $3 million for the property and invest another $3.7 million in its redevelopment, to include inside and outside renovations, according to the Memphis Business Journal. The four-story, 100-room hotel is located at 2144 Madison Ave. on the opposite corner of Loeb Properties’ $19-million Overton Square redevelopment project.

In other news, a $14.6-million permit application has been filed for Southwest Tennessee Community College’s long-planned Nursing, Natural Sciences and Biotechnology Building. The new three-story building will be located at STCC’s Union Avenue campus in downtown.

The structure was designed by Fleming Associates Architects PC, and its construction will be supervised by W.G. Yates & Sons Construction Co. The completion date was initially set for spring 2014.

Financing for the project will come from different sources, including $8.4 million in state appropriations and $10 million from individuals, corporations, organizations and federal appropriations, as reported by the Daily News.

The 61,000-square-foot facility, which will also include two mechanical penthouses, will feature a 250-seat teaching auditorium, four lecture rooms, a 100-seat computer laboratory, nursing skills and biotech labs, and an office suite for faculty and staff.

In addition, the Daily News reports that Memphis-based EdR, one of America’s largest owners, developers and managers of collegiate housing, recently completed the acquisition of The Reserve on Stinson, a 612-bedroom apartment community near the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Okla.

EdR purchased the 90% interest held by its joint-venture partner based on a total property value of $22.9 million, according to company statements.

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Image courtesy of Southwest Tennessee Community College’s Facebook page