Glendale City Council asks for plans for Marriott’s proposed 117-room project

The City Council on Tuesday gave Marriott International the go-ahead to draw up plans for an artsy boutique hotel that could be built behind a pair of downtown restaurants.

The idea is to construct a 117-room AC Hotel — the first in California — on the site of a 55-space parking lot at Maryland and California avenues. The project site is to the rear of Panera Bread and the Mediterranean eatery Carousel.

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A 5-0 vote gave the hotel company 180 days to come up with plans. It’s the second “boutique hotel” the council is actively pursuing, the other being a 130-bed Indigo Hotel that’s currently being designed.

That location is just across the intersection behind 24-Hour Fitness.

Boutique hotels tend to be higher-end places to stay and have been sought by council members in the past as a better fit for downtown.

Staffers and council members have gone so far as to attend hotel conferences to try to recruit interest, said Darlene Sanchez, the city’s principal economic development director.

She said AC Hotels — which originated in Europe and has a handful of U.S. locations — prides its locations as upscale, and a local one would complement the downtown arts district, she said.

“Something from this proposal that made this development stand out is that they were really inspired and influenced by the Alex Theatre … [the developer] will feature art throughout the property,” Sanchez said.

The developer that would actually build the project is W&W Cornerstone Development, LLC, which has constructed hotels for companies such as Hilton and La Quinta.

Councilwoman Paula Devine asked what would become of the 55 parking spaces if they were cleared out, and Sanchez said they will likely be moved underground.

Either way, the developer would have to replace the lost spaces, Sanchez said.

If built, the AC Hotel could generate about $800,000 for the city in transient occupancy taxes, according to a city staff report.

Councilwoman Laura Friedman said she would like for union workers to be hired for construction.

“I think that’s important,” she said. “Given this is on public property, I think the workers in the hotel have the protection that a union would give them.”

However, that aspect of the project would more likely be discussed when the project design comes back for a review.

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Arin Mikailian, arin.mikailian@latimes.com

Twitter: @ArinMikailian