A groundbreaking was held Tuesday for a 144-room Courtyard Marriott hotel in Downtown Fresno to be completed by 2025. Photo by Ben Hensley

The Axis Hotel Group and the Klassen Corporation held a groundbreaking Tuesday commemorating the start of construction on a 144-room Courtyard Marriott next to the Fresno Convention Center.

Members of the development group were in attendance for what was called an historic event along with District 3 Councilmember Miguel Arias and Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer.

“We’ve been talking about a hotel in downtown for the last 20 plus years and that never happened,” said Nichole Castillo, director of sales at Courtyard by Marriott. “Finally we have added 144 rooms to help with the conventioneers and the market here to bring back some conventions to Fresno.”

The hotel sits on 90,000 square feet of space and will include 144 rooms, five floors, a conference room and a swimming pool, and will provide full-service amenities including food, beverage, catering and coffee.

Castillo mentioned that the addition of a hotel would add space and hopefully attract more conventions and events to the Fresno and Central Valley area, which has struggled when compared to similarly sized cities due to the lack of downtown hotel space.

“As I understand it, about 16 years ago, my city manager, Georgeann White, who was then a chief of staff, stood right here on a groundbreaking for another hotel that did not materialize,” Dyer said. “We are not going to have the same problem here on this project because I know it is going to come to fruition.”

The project will provide anywhere from 50 to 60 new jobs, in addition to the construction jobs that the project will require.

Arias commented on the revitalization of the downtown district, mentioning the upcoming remodel of Hotel Fresno into affordable housing.

“Soon, we’ll see a lot more businesses and restaurants popping up on Fulton Street,” Arias said about revitalization. “Then, we’ll have our high-speed rail station that will connect the whole state to the city of Fresno.”

Arias previewed a future for Fresno, including 20-story hotel buildings once the city is directly connected by the high-speed rail station.

The project is scheduled to open in 2025.

“The reality is, this is the right hotel at the right time for Fresno,” Dyer said. “It’s going to be a beautiful hotel, and it should be something that all of us should get behind and celebrate.”