Stillwater set to approve Water Street Inn expansion

Undated courtesy image of a three-story addition that is being proposed by the owner of the Water Street Inn to the building in downtown Stillwater. (Image courtesy of the Water Street Inn)

Plans to narrow a portion of Myrtle Street to allow room for the expansion of the Water Street Inn are expected to be approved by the Stillwater City Council on Tuesday.

The southern edge of Myrtle just east of Water Street would be moved 3 feet north to accommodate the addition's tower element -- a nod to the clock tower of the Union Depot that formerly stood on the site.

The council last month gave preliminary approval to the expansion plans but asked that the three-story addition be farther back from Myrtle.

Inn owner Chuck Dougherty came back with an architects' proposal that "redesigned how the building meets and interacts with the street," Community Development Director Bill Turnblad said. "We believe that their revisions are safe for traffic and pedestrian use."

Turnblad said an earlier proposal to narrow the street by 8 feet would have made it too small to accommodate fire trucks. He said the 3-foot bump seems like a reasonable compromise.

The 21,000-square-foot addition would add about 20 rooms to the 41-room hotel. It includes a rooftop patio and a new primary entrance and lobby.

Mary Divine can be reached at 651-228-5443. Follow her at twitter.com/MaryEDivine.

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Stillwater set to approve Water Street Inn expansion