A new, nearly 100-room hotel may soon be breaking ground in Liberty Township if it gets approval following an upcoming public meeting and approval by the Trumbull Commissioners.

According to Nick Coggins, Assistant Director of the Trumbull County Planning Commission, a major corporation with a flag name hotel is looking to build a new facility on Motor Inn Drive in the township.

"We had the developer come out to look at the property," said Greg Sizmar, Liberty Township Trustee. "He was interested in where it was at, being close to I-80. After doing some studies, he knew this location would be a great opportunity for a hotel."

The hotel is looking to have between 89 to 99 rooms in the 55,000-square-foot facility and is hoping, if approved, it will be to break ground later this year.

"When people stay in Trumbull County, they pay a bed tax, which helps support our port authority," Coggins explained. "Which runs our airport and it also supports our tourism bureaus."

The developer, Steel & Liberty LLC, has asked Trumbull County Commissioners for a 10-year tax abatement on the property through a Community Reinvestment Area Agreement, which would lower the tax rate to give the builder time to get a return on its investment. 

This would need approval from both Liberty Twp. Trustees and Trumbull County Commissioners and they plan to vote on the idea during their May meetings. 

"It shows that liberty is a place that's sought after and it's growing," said Arnie Clebone, Liberty Twp. Trustee. "It brings more business here. People that stay here will be patrons of businesses around here. Business brings in more business."

The state filing for Liberty & Steel LLC, listed as a Real Estate Development company, is headquartered in Oakwood Village, a suburb of Cleveland. The filing agent for the business in October of 2022 was Nisarg Patel.

Trumbull County Commissioner Denny Malloy told 21 News it is a higher-end hotel, which he said is needed in the area to help support future economic development in the county.

"As a commissioner, this is the type of news I love. This will fill a need that we definitely have right now," Malloy said.

"Jobs in Trumbull County and investment in the structures in Trumbull County is always a great sign of progress," Coggins added. 

Trustees will vote on the hotel at their May 16th meeting.

The Trumbull County Commissioners have scheduled a public meeting at 10 a.m. for May 24, in the Commissioners' Hearing Room, 160 High Street NW, 5th Floor, in Warren. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the potential new business and the requested tax abatement. 

Patel declined to speak about the project until after the public meeting, but a search of the Ohio Secretary of State business search indicates additional real estate development businesses listed under the name Nisaeg Patel, showing additional hotels in Ohio, including in Mansfield and Hampton Inn in Alliance.

If approved, the tax abatement will be filed with the Trumbull County Auditor's office, and the developers hope to have the new hotel open by December 2024. 

"We're excited about it," Clebone said. "I think it's a great idea."

"New development is positive," Sizmar concluded.