A pair of projects that have been discussed for some time in Bridgeport had some details revealed by two different organizations at tonight’s Bridgeport City Council meeting. The Greater Bridgeport Convention and Visitors Bureau and the developers of Charles Pointe, Genesis Partners, laid out some of the plans for efforts they are currently involved in getting off the ground.

 

The big news may have been the announcement by Genesis Partners Managing Member Jamie Corton that their group had secured a franchise agreement with the Wyndham Hotel Group to build up to a 200 room Wyndham Garden, which the developers say would be the largest in a 30-mile radius of Bridgeport. The Executive Director of Development for Charles Pointe, Mark Dellana, said the hotel is a $20.7 million project.

 

It’s part of the “Bridgeport Event Center” that will also house a second Bridgeport Conference Center. The second conference center will be 25,000 square feet, which will surpass the 15,000 square feet of the current center and be able to meet event demands not currently being able to be met due to a lack of size and the inability to expand.

 

Dellana said that the cost of the new conference center is $11 million. He added that it will be connected to the Wyndham. The conference center is tied to the memorandum of understanding (MOU) between Bridgeport and the developers where the city received the acreage for what will be the proposed indoor recreation complex. City Manager Kim Haws confirmed again the city has a $1 million commitment for the new conference center as part of the MOU and that those dollars will come out of the general fund as needed.

 

“This is good news,” said Corton, who then read a letter from Wyndham President and CEO Geoff Ballotti about the agreement to come to Bridgeport. (Letter in its entirety is below)

 

Corton said Ballotti was actually in Bridgeport recently to discuss the project. Wyndham already has two hotels – the Wingate and the Microtel – situated at Charles Pointe.

 

While Corton and Dellana explained the “Event Center,” GBCVB Board President Drew Pomeroy talked about the multi-purpose facility project the CVB is heading up. Design work for that is progressing as the CVB has secured the services of Bridgeport-based Thrasher Group.

 

Pomeroy said the building will be roughly 22,000 square feet and two floors. The good news is that he said that all but 3,500 of the square feet is accounted for among the CVB, higher education, the offices of the Mountain East Conference and a new restaurant. Pomeroy could not disclose the higher education or restaurant that would be going into the building.

 

“When this is done, this building is going to knock your socks off,” said Pomeroy. “ … It’s going to be a showcase facility to show how tourism is supposed to be done.”

 

Pomeroy said he hopes to see construction to begin in late spring. He was also hopeful that the first tenants could be inside the building by the end of the year.

 

Along with discussing the new multi-purpose facility, Pomeroy also gave a report on the status of the CVB. He broke down the history of hotels in the area, revenues as well as continuing to look at ways to make Bridgeport a destination.

 

In other business, Council unanimously approved the bid of CXT of Washington, one of only two companies to bid on the request sent out for a pre-fabricated concrete building to be installed at Bridgeport City Park. Smith-Midland of Virginia was the other bidder, but CXT has the low, qualified bid of $65,602.

 

The building will be 2,600 square feet. It will be situated on one floor. It will also be eight feet high

 

Recently, Parks and Recreation Director Don Burton said that for years that groups such as Little League, Bridgeport Softball Association, youth soccer and others have sold concessions at City Park. Sales were done under tents or at tables set up to help provide refreshments for those attending events that take place at the facility during the warm weather months. At many events, there are simply no concessions.

 

The new building will be located between the Little League field and the girls’ softball field. It will sit in the grassy area dividing the two fields.

 

Also this evening, Council:

Editor's Note: Top photo shows Jamie Corton in the work session prior to the Council meeting, while Drew Pomeroy, left, and Michelle Duez of the CVB are shown in the second photo. Bridgeport Parks and Recreation Director Don Burton is shown in the bottom photo. Below the editor's note is the letter from the Wyndham Group to Genesis Partners read by Corton at the meeting.