Reflecting the Revised Planned Development Submitted December 2025

 

1. How big is the new hotel now, and how does it compare to the earlier proposal?

The updated plan is approximately half the size of the earlier version.

• Old proposal: 75,830 sq ft of new construction, 116 rooms.

• New proposal: ~38,500 sq ft above grade, 68-70 rooms within the new structure (plus a modest 6,500-sf service basement) and 2-4 special guest suites within the historic structures. Total guestrooms count has been reduced to 72.

This reduction dramatically decreases massing, traffic, parking needs, and neighborhood impact. The new building is lower than the historic President’s House and set more than 90 feet behind it, keeping the historic home as the visual focal point.

 

2. Will the hotel “loom over” Prince Avenue or the neighborhoods?

No. The new building is:

• Lower than the President’s House

• Tucked over 90 feet behind it (34 feet further back than the earlier iteration), shielded by gardens and mature magnolias

• Almost 300’ feet from Prince Avenue

• Screened by  preserved historic front gardens

Most of the new structure will not be visible from Prince Avenue.

 

3. What happens to the historic President’s House itself?

The entire house will be restored using the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards, including significant interior rooms. No exterior additions are made except a small, reversible garden-level one-story kitchen addition. The addition is located to the side of the historic house and set rearward of the existing wrap around porch to maintain visual primacy of the historic resource.

Public access is a central goal: the home will include a restaurant, bar, and parlor-level hospitality spaces open to visitors.

A permanent preservation easement protecting the façade and front gardens is being coordinated and will be finalized prior to construction.

This directly addresses concerns raised by Historic Athens and Cobbham.

 

4. Are the historic outbuildings (cottage and smokehouse) being moved or demolished?

No. Both outbuildings will remain in place. Only the non-historic automotive garage is being removed. The cottage and smokehouse will be adaptively-reused in accordance with preservation standards and incorporated sensitively into the new site plan.

This is a major revision responding to Historic Athens and the Historic Cobbham Foundation, and a significant change from the early 2025 concept.

 

5. What happens to the historic rear greenspace and garden?

The entire northern portion of the 5-acre property remains passive greenspace, including mature trees near residential properties.

Only one row of parking sits at the projected transition line of the C-N zone with over three times the required vegetated buffer and sunken approximately 10 feet from the grade of the closest single-family property; no buildings extend into the 2-acre residential buffer, and the rear garden feel is preserved.

Several letters in the community compilation expressed fears of losing “the back garden.”
The new plan eliminates all new construction in that area. Additionally, the majority of the existing courtyard behind the Presidents House will be conserved now that the smaller buildings will remain in their existing locations. 

 

6. What about traffic on Prince Avenue? Will this overwhelm the corridor?

A full, ACC-standardized traffic study was completed for the original 116-room plan.
That study showed no significant impact on Prince Avenue.

The revised, smaller plan generates 40–45 percent fewer trips.

Additional commitments:

• No new curb cuts

• No access to neighborhood streets

• No valet operations routed through residential blocks

• No queuing allowed on Prince Avenue

• Pedestrian-oriented design and guest bikes available

• Shuttles will be considered for peak times

Concerns such as “800+ daily trips” no longer apply to the revised plan which no longer includes separate special events facilities.

 

7. Will there be blasting or disruptive excavation?

No. Underground parking was removed entirely.

This means:

• No blasting (which was not planned originally)

• Excavation is limited to a small basement footprint to house hotel utilities and support spaces and shallow stormwater retention chambers located below the parking lot drive aisles. No multi-year disruption.

• No risk to nearby historic structures, including homes and historic windows at Emmanuel Church.

All construction staging occurs on-site, not in neighborhoods.

 

8. Will the hotel cause noise problems or host large events?

No event venue is included in the new plan.

Hosting now occurs:

• Inside the historic house, or

• In the small interior courtyard to minimize noise trespass.  

• At other community facilities. 

There will be:

• No rooftop bar or deck (one was not originally proposed but residents expressed concerns)

• Event hours consistent with neighborhood expectations

• Delivery and waste service limited to daytime hours. These services will also need to pass directly by adjacent guest rooms. Thoughtful scheduling will be critical to guest comfort just as it will be for adjacent neighbors.

Many community concerns referenced “200-person events,” “large weddings,” and “late-night noise.” We believe these changes have addressed these concerns. 

 

9. How much parking is on site? Does it spill into neighborhoods?

All required parking is provided on-site on a single level, with no underground garage and no off-site lots.

There will be:

• No neighborhood parking

• No valet drop-off on residential streets

• No employee parking in neighborhoods

The 98-space surface lot is modest in size due to the reduced room count.

 

10. What about stormwater and drainage? Will this worsen flooding?

The updated plan includes a modern stormwater system that meets and exceeds ACC requirements.

It will utilize underground retention and:

• Slow and store runoff – designed for the 100-year storm event

• Reduce peak discharges compared to current conditions

• Discharge water associated with the proposed improvements toward Prince Avenue, not toward residential yards or the Grady Avenue Corridor. 

Several concerns referenced “low-lying Boulevard residences.”

The new design keeps all stormwater systems on the commercial side of the parcel, not near homes. 

 

11. How does the project protect the neighborhoods behind it?

Neighborhood protection measures include:

• A deep, 2 acre greenspace buffer along the entire north property line

• Additional landscape screening and fencing where needed

• No service functions (trash, loading, deliveries) near residences

• A building mass that wraps inward, facing away from houses and staying wholly within the Prince Avenue commercial corridor

Concerns that the project “pierces deeply into the residential neighborhood” are addressed by the drastically reduced footprint.

 

12. Won’t this set a precedent for more commercial creep into neighborhoods?

No. This is a site-specific Planned Development with:

• A legally binding site plan

• A fixed building footprint and height

• No ability to expand or intensify without a new public rezoning

Other Prince Avenue lots cannot replicate this PD because they lack:

• 5 acres

• A National Register property

• Large internal buffers

The PD prevents “creep,” not encourages it. A more standard rezone of this property without the binding nature of a PD would not provide any permanent protection of the gardens at the rear of the property from future development.

 

13. Does the project comply with the Comprehensive Plan?

Yes. The property is designated Main Street Business, which encourages mixed-use, pedestrian-oriented activity along Prince Avenue.

The PD approach is specifically intended for unique properties requiring tailored solutions, including historic preservation projects.

The proposed building size is comparable to nearby buildings including Emmanuel Episcopal Church, Clarke  County School District offices, and The Bridge Community Church. The total bedrooms are also similar in quantity to adjacent multifamily properties at 120,130 & 136 Grady Avenue but on a much larger lot. 

 

14. Why not build a much smaller, 25–40 room hotel? Some neighbors said this is the only “right size.”

Several public comments suggested 20–40 rooms.

However:

• A boutique hotel at that size cannot fund the $2M+ in deferred maintenance needed for the President’s House in addition to the ongoing maintenance needs of the house and grounds.

• Smaller hotels rely heavily on events—and the new plan eliminates event spaces to be more neighborhood-friendly.

• Comparable local hotels (the Athenian, Bell, Rivet House) were developed on far smaller lots with very different contexts; none includes a 5-acre historic landscape nor a 9,692 square foot historic residence to maintain.

The revised 72-room plan represents the minimum viable scale to ensure long-term preservation and public access.

 

15. Will this become a chain hotel?

We expect the hotel to be flagged as a Graduate Hotel underneath the Hilton brand. 

But any future owner must follow the exact PD conditions—they cannot:

• Add rooms

• Add height

• Add new buildings

• Add events or outdoor uses

• Change traffic patterns

The Graduate brand has evolved significantly since its debut in Athens and is now part of Hilton’s portfolio of lifestyle hotels. Graduate properties are designed to reflect the personality, history, and character of their university communities, with a strong emphasis on local storytelling, architectural context, and one-of-a-kind interiors. Unlike traditional chain hotels, each Graduate location is intentionally different, crafted to feel rooted in the culture and heritage of its setting. 

This hotel will operate under a national brand, but it will look, feel, and function as a uniquely Athens property — and the PD legally prevents it from ever growing into something larger or more intensive.

 

16. Why is a hotel the best use for the President’s House?

Because a hotel:

• Provides the income needed to fully restore and maintain the property

• Allows public access for the first time since 1949

• Reduces pressure on short-term rental conversions in neighborhoods

• Supports local businesses along Prince Avenue

• Fits the walkability and transit orientation of the corridor

• Is less intensive than other uses (apartments, student housing, medical office, etc.)

And importantly: it saves the house. UGA documented more than $2M in deferred maintenance. Without a viable adaptive reuse plan, the building would continue to deteriorate.