Downtown hotel proposed for Woodstock

A new hotel could be coming to downtown Woodstock.

More lodging in Woodstock, and particularly in downtown, has been a goal of city leaders for a while. In last fall’s State of the City address, Mayor Mike Turner said the city was “begging” for a hotel downtown.

The City Council is now taking up a proposal from a Wisconsin-based developer for a Cobblestone Hotel downtown that would have 60 rooms, an indoor pool and a Wissota Chophouse restaurant.

City documents indicate the developer, Kebb CS-WK, LLC, was recommended through consultants the city worked with on a downtown Hotel Study.

Though a redevelopment agreement is on the table, city documents indicate Woodstock must solicit other proposals before moving forward with this one. If the city doesn’t get any other proposals, the Cobblestone plan, scheduled to be presented at Tuesday’s City Council meeting, could be the one city officials go with.

According to its website, Cobblestone has other locations throughout the Midwest, West and the South, including in Janesville, Wisconsin. That one also has a Wissota Chophouse, which serves seafood and steaks, among other things, according to its menu.

If approved for Woodstock, the hotel would be located at the intersection of Jefferson and Calhoun streets just outside the Square. The proposed location is currently a city-owned public parking lot, and city documents indicate Woodstock could acquire another nearby parcel of land and reconfigure another parking lot in the vicinity to accommodate the hotel. Those actions would ultimately increase public parking in the area, according to city documents.

Woodstock officials say the city could also take up overnight street parking permits as a way to handle parking during hotel construction, in addition to leasing temporary public parking in the area. Street parking is limited to 30 minutes during the hours of 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. in Woodstock. However, the city acknowledges another parking study is needed for the project.

The project has an estimated cost of roughly $12.6 million, according to city documents.

The developer is asking $2 million of tax-increment financing, or TIF, funds for the project. City officials are estimating the hotel would generate $85,000 in property taxes each year, which would go back to the developer. Reimbursement is capped at 20% of the cost or $2 million, according to city documents.

City documents also indicate the project is eligible for an additional estimated $500,000 of Enterprise Zone incentives.

The proposed agreement with the developer for the hotel stipulates construction must be complete by Aug. 1, 2026.

The Woodstock City Council plans to review and vote on a hotel Tuesday evening. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 121 W. Calhoun Street.