By Linda Taaffe

Hotel negotiations between developer Roxy Rapp and the city of Los Altos were on hold last week until Oct. 23, when Rapp is scheduled to bring an alternative plan for a three-story hotel to the table.

The Los Altos City Council selected Rapp last June over three other developers to build a two-story boutique hotel with 75 public parking spaces on the .78-acre, city-owned site on the corner of First and Main streets.

Rapp had initially proposed a three-story hotel. The council agreed to limit the building to two stories after neighbors expressed concern over such a large proposal.

Rapp said he was ready to sign an “exclusive right to negotiate” agreement and give the city the $25,000 requested as part of the deal in order to get the project moving. He suggested meeting with the property’s current tenants to work out a project time line that would be agreeable to all parties. The Home Consignment Center and Nielsen’s Martinizing Dry Cleaning have leases at the site that run through 2006.

The council stalled the agreement until Rapp could give them an updated proposal that fits within the council’s modified parameters, which council members set last June when they first selected Rapp.

Mayor King Lear said the council needed a clear concept of Rapp’s updated plans.

Rapp said he would need 85 beds to make the hotel economically feasible. He said the building, whether two stories or three, would remain 30 feet tall.

If the council chooses a two-story plan, both parties could immediately enter into closed negotiations.