By Jessica Coates
jessica.coates@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — A group the city hired to assess the economic benefits of the Empire Hotel project will make a presentation at Tuesday’s Salisbury City Council meeting.

According to the released agenda packet, the group — Development Planning & Financing Group Inc. — will present the amounts of real property tax, sales tax and other revenue the city will earn as the result of the project.

Those projections will include both the benefit to the local economy during the two-year construction phase and the ongoing benefits from job creation and spending by new residents once construction is finished, according to the agenda.

According to the report prepared by the group, the real property tax value of the Empire Hotel site should increase from its current $1 million to $17 million once construction is completed.

The Empire is also projected to generate $61,000 in real property tax revenue and $42,000 in other revenue annually for the city.

The project’s construction should generate about temporary 94 jobs annually and, once it is completed, the building’s new businesses and residents should generate about 102 permanent jobs.

The Empire Hotel is slated to have 62 market-rate apartments and 28,000 square feet of commercial space.

Lucy Gallo of Development Planning is scheduled to make the presentation and will likely discuss how the group reached its conclusions.

Other items on the agenda include:

• The council will consider adopting a resolution to approve the proposed name of Fire Station 6.

The proposed name is the Justin Monroe and Vic Isler Fire Station and Fire Academy.

Fire Station 6 is the first city fire facility to be built since Monroe and Isler died in a March 2008 fire.

• The council will consider a resolution to establish a public hearing for the proposed leasing of Fibrant at its March 20 meeting.

The resolution says that the City Council “desires to provide an opportunity for members of the public to be heard on the proposed lease” to Hotwire Communications.

City Manager Lane Bailey announced at the council’s Feb. 6 meeting that the city is in negotiations to lease Fibrant to Hotwire Communications, a fiber optics telecommunication provider operating in the northern and southeastern parts of the country.

• The council will receive an update on the city’s solid waste collection service changes.

Public Services Director Tony Cinquemani and Assistant Director Craig Powers are scheduled to make a presentation about how the recent changes in garbage routes and collection procedures have gone.

According to their released presentation, they have heard both positive and negative feedback about the new collection standards for bulky items.

• The council will receive a follow-up report regarding the CDBG/HOME budget and activities.

The council will meet at 5 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 217 S. Main St.

Contact reporter Jessica Coates at 704-797-4222.