By Editorial

The Los Altos City Council made the right decision last week when members, by a 4-1 vote, approved plans for a three-story Apricot Inn hotel at the corner of First and Main streets.

Council members remained focused, approving the concept of a three-story hotel despite the request of another developer who wanted the council to reconsider the movie theater and condominiums plan. The issue of hotel vs. theater had been decided back in June.

We are pleased council has stayed the course for reasons we have stated all along surrounding our support for a small hotel at this spot: manageable traffic, patrons who will shop downtown, increased downtown parking and a building with a village look.

Some have speculated that our support for a hotel means we are somehow profiting from this. They’re right: We, as well as the entire downtown, will benefit from a venue that blends into the downtown while adding to merchant pocketbooks and the city coffers.

Revenues from a transient occupancy tax, that stands to climb as high as 11 percent after next Tuesday’s election, means potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars that translate to increased city services. The other proposals for the First and Main spot paled in comparison.

Some see the current hotel proposal as foolhardy, given the state of the economy and the construction of two other hotels already in progress along El Camino Real. But the specific timeline for this hotel remains fluid. The issue of negotiating and buying out leases with the current tenants means the start of construction is at least two to three years away. Economists are predicting a rebound by the second half of next year.

As with the year 2000, when unprecedented growth saw companies hiring and spending wildly, we will again see the day when corporate accounts bulge and travelers will gladly pay the top-dollar prices this hotel will command.

Developers like Roxy Rapp do not plan to build hotels so they can lose their collective shirts. He knows - and we know - there is hotel business to be had with a downtown location.

The irony with past hotel-vs.-theater debates at the First and Main property is that the hotel could actually improve the chances for a theater downtown. After all, hotel guests may want to catch a flick in the evening after most of the shops have closed. We think this could co-exist, given the proper theater location.

The council’s latest action was a good step forward.