LIBERTY CENTER TIMELINE
2008: Liberty Town Square project proposed and planned unit development approved by Liberty Twp.
2011: Talks resume for the project between county and company officials, after a hiatus brought on by the economy
Dec. 2011: Developer Yaromir Steiner tells the Journal he hopes to break ground by end of 2012 or early 2013 and still plans to open in 2014
Jan. 2012: Memorandum of understanding reached between Butler County, Liberty Twp. and Steiner + Associates over public financing for infrastructure, worth approximately $35 million
Feb. 2012: Steiner buys first tract of land for the project, 50 acres for approximately $8 million
Sept. 2012: Journal-News learns that the center's opening is delayed until 2015
April 24, 2013: Steiner + Associates, Dillard's announce the department store has signed a lease, the first tenant
April 25, 2013: Steiner + Associates presents new site plans to joint county and township government meeting. Changes made include going from three anchor tenants to two anchor tenants, and one junior tenant, among others
May 20, 2013: Steiner + Associates announces the second major tenant for Liberty Center to be dinner-and-movie theater CineBistro
July 25, 2013: Steiner + Associates, Butler County and Liberty Twp. sign Master Development Agreement for $43 million ($25 million commitment from county and township) in public financing
Oct. 2013: The Liberty Twp. Zoning Commission approves the final planned unit development plan for the first phase of Liberty Center
Nov. 25, 2013: Butler County Commissioners approve to move a deadline of Nov. 1, 2013 to March 1, 2014 for certain contingencies written into the Master Development Agreement signed in July. The project missed the Nov. 1 target date set for securing financing, and reaching firm commitments with more tenants
Feb. 10, 2014: Butler County Commissioners approved an extension of the county's water and sewer lines to the property
Feb. 28, 2014: Developer buys rest of land for mega Liberty Twp. retail center
March 1, 2014: Developers and local governments miss a March 1 deadline to issue a bond, borrowing money for the public taxpayer contribution/incentives to the project
March 7, 2014: Pizza restaurant named for Liberty Center development
March 18, 2014: AC Hotels by Marriott, Steiner + Associates announce 130-room hotel for Liberty Center
Developers of the mega retail project Liberty Center announced Tuesday they signed the AC Hotels by Marriott brand for the site’s planned hotel.
The 130-room hotel will be built, owned and operated by Middleton, Wis.-based Raymond Management Co., a hotel developer partnering with Steiner + Associates on the project.
Plans for a hotel were previously announced by Steiner for Liberty Center. Tuesday’s news revealed which hotel brand was franchised.
“Our tagline for AC Hotels is ‘feel the city.’ It’s very design-oriented and targeted very much towards the millennial traveler,” said Nina Herrera-Davila, a spokeswoman for Marriott.
Liberty Center, in the early stages of construction in Liberty Twp., is the name of the approximately 1.4 million-square-foot mixed-use shopping, office and residential complex planned for the intersection of Ohio 129, Interstate 75 and Liberty Way. It’s scheduled to open in September 2015, according to Columbus-based Steiner + Associates.
Steiner is the same developer of Easton Town Center in the Columbus-area and The Greene in Beavercreek. The Butler County project’s first phase is expected to be a more than $300 million investment encompassing 64 acres.
AC Hotels by Marriott is a new brand in the U.S., Herrera-Davila said.
Marriott International announced in 2013 it would introduce the AC Hotels brand to the U.S. in a joint venture with Spain’s AC Hotels. About 30 AC Hotels are in the development pipeline across the country, with the first opening later this year in New Orleans, La., Herrera-Davila said.
Currently there are about 79 AC Hotels open in Europe, she said.
The future AC Hotel at Liberty Center is expected to have approximately 130 rooms, 3,000-square-feet of meeting space, a second floor pool, and a library that serves as a business center, according to developers Steiner and Raymond Management. In the lobby, the AC Lounge will offer guests a full breakfast buffet. The hotel will also feature light meal choices in addition to offering cocktails, craft beers and fine wines, according to Steiner.
Patio and balcony spaces at the hotel will overlook the town square, the developer said.
The AC Hotel model features the lounge as the heart of the lobby area, Herrera-Davila added.
“This is not your suburban hotel. It’s definitely an urban feel,” she said.
A second AC Hotel is being built in downtown Cincinnati by a different developer, and is not affected by the Liberty Center agreement, Herrera-Davila said. Both the downtown Cincinnati and Butler County AC Hotels are set to open in 2015.
Along with announcing the hotel plans Tuesday, Steiner + Associates also provided an update on leasing for Liberty Center.
“As of today, the retail component of Liberty Center is over 50 percent committed and the project is on track for a fall 2015 opening,” said Yaromir Steiner, founder and chief executive officer of Steiner + Associates, in a statement.
Liberty Center tenants announced to date are department store Dillard’s, dinner-and-movie theater CineBistro, and pizza restaurant Pies & Pints.
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