A four-story hotel with 51 rooms appears to be on its way to downtown Parker, as the town council unanimously approved a comprehensive planning agreement for the project on Nov. 7.

The council, minus absent members Amy Holland and Renee Williams, approved the plan to sell the property at 19801 Mainstreet to Mars Development LLC, a Parker real estate developer. The site is currently the home of the Parker Economic Development Department.

The four-story, 51,000-square-foot building will have 51 rooms, a ground-floor restaurant and retail space.

Weldy Feazell, business retention and marketing manager for the town, said the addition of a mixed-use building at that location will open up Mainstreet to more businesses and consumers.

The goal for the town “is to redevelop the site to make it more active,” Feazell said. “It's an under-utilized site.”

She said the addition of a mixed-use building will extend the retail corridor on Mainstreet from O'Brien Park to the east side of Victorian Drive, and bring visitors to the area to shop.

The building plan includes 25 parking spaces, an issue of contention with resident Terry Dodd, who questioned the council during the public comment period of the meeting.

Dodd, who ran for town council this election season, asked why the plan was being decided on before a current parking study conducted by the town is complete.

Councilmember Josh Martin said that “everything we've seen” about the project indicates that the hotel wouldn't cause any parking issues in the area. Councilmember John Diak said the parking issue would be looked at but he also felt it wouldn't have an impact on the plan going forward.

Feazell said there are several more agreements that need to be worked out between the council, the Parker Authority for Reinvestment and the developer, including the site plan and tax fee and incentive agreements.

If the process and approvals go smoothly, Feazell said her “best guess” for construction to begin would be the beginning of 2017.