NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Mark and Phoebe Davenport are looking to sell the Hoke Building project to someone. They'd love it if someone who is closer than they are could take it over.
"As the years have rolled by, it's taken longer than we thought," Mark Davenport said. "The costs have increased, as well. We're not best placed to finish the project, ultimately. We're based in Kansas City. We think most likely, it's probably a developer or other owner in Hutch or in the surrounding area that is best placed to get it across the finish line."
They were planning a boutique hotel, but they could see many possibilities for someone new.
"We've staked a lot on the market for a hotel," Davenport said. "Obviously, that's how we've developed it. I think there still is a market for it, but it could also go affordable housing, so there's a range of options for how it could play out."
Since a hotel was the plan for the Hoke, they didn't have access to the same funding stack that the Landmark has put together. They also didn't end up in the new STAR Bond district that is going to include the Landmark.
"We weren't considered for that, which was kind of surprising, given the nature of the boutique hotel and how it's kind of an attraction and kind of a big deal, I think, for a city like Hutch to have a boutique hotel," Davenport said. "We weren't notified that was really happening. When I found out about it and talked to the powers that be, the opportunity had already passed."
Davenport said 95% of the exterior has been done. Inside, they've taken down the floor, poured new concrete and taken care of the electrical and plumbing. They've done most of an elevator installation and started work on the stair tower and other structural work. They also started some framing related to using it as a boutique hotel, but that could be undone, if the new owner wanted it for a different purpose.