Indianapolis committee chooses JW Marriott hotel for downtown

Cory Schouten, IBJ staff writer

A sprawling complex of five hotels including an 800-room JW Marriott near White River State Park has won the city's blessing for a new convention headquarters hotel.

The $250-million project, which includes more than 1,500 rooms, is proposed by a partnership of Merrillville-based White Lodging Services Corp. and Indianapolis-based REI Real Estate Services.

The city is expected to offer rich incentives for the project, which is set to open to coincide with the 2010 opening of a $275 million expansion of the Indiana Convention Center.

The other finalist proposal, a partnership of Indianapolis-based Browning Investments Inc. and Milwaukee-based hotelier Marcus Corp, called for a 44-story InterContinental Hotel tower on Pan Am Plaza.

The committee, appointed by Mayor Bart Peterson, has been meeting with two potential development teams since early December, when a third team proposing an expansion of the Westin Indianapolis dropped out of the running.

The committee met this afternoon to finalize their recommendation to Peterson. He is expected to follow their recommendation.