By NATE KING
Salina Post
The Salina City Commission postponed a demolition vote for the vacant 192-room Ambassador Hotel at 1616 W. Crawford St., leaving its future uncertain after a public hearing on Oct. 14.
The hotel, which opened in the 1980s as the Holiday Inn Holidome and later became a Ramada before rebranding as the Ambassador, has faced years of neglect and safety violations. In July, city commissioners designated the building as a dangerous structure after a review by Dangerous Structure Specialist Sean Furbeck. This designation followed a history of violations, including unsecured entry points, structural deterioration, illegal fires, and use by vagrants. The city gave property owner Joshua Joseph two options: repair the building or proceed with its demolition.
During the Oct. 14 city commission meeting, Joseph presented a new plan, outlining a proposal to divide the existing structure into two separate buildings and complete a cleanup and partial demolition within three months, with the entire project to be finished within a year. The plans also included indoor pickleball courts between the indoor storage facilities.
Joseph claimed to have secured $3 million in financing from Frontier State Bank in Oklahoma City, backed by a $1 million certificate of deposit.
Despite the proposal, commissioners voiced concerns. Commissioner Greg Lenkiewicz a previous presentation from Joseph in 2017, describing it as disorganized and last-minute.
READ MORE: Salina City Commission labels Ambassador Hotel as dangerous structure — next steps
"You presented it in a manner where it wasn't in the format, it wasn't part of the agenda, it was a part of the public comment," Lenkiewicz said. "It seamed like seat of the pants planning, or last minute action. It is in our best interests to explore what you have to offer, but in my opinion it's going to need to have some stipulations with it."
Commissioner Trent Davis questioned Joseph's experience with similar projects, to which Joseph responded by highlighting his background in hotel construction in Oklahoma and Dallas.
Commissioner Hoppock cited past issues with Joseph’s projects in Hays and Hutchinson, questioning his commitment to the Salina community.
"I guess today may be your lucky day that you are going to get a chance to do what you say you are going to do," Hoppock said. "You are on a short leash, we aren't going to put up with a lot of 'well buts.'"
The commission voted 5-0 to delay the decision until Oct. 28, 2024, giving Joseph until 5 p.m. Tuesday to provide a satisfactory loan commitment letter.
On Wednesday morning Salina Mayor Bill Longbine informed Salina Post that Andrea Properties had failed to provide sufficient financial assurances for the project.
Now, the Ambassador Hotel faces the prospect of demolition, either by Joseph or the City of Salina, with initial estimates placing the cost at $1.7 million. The city commission will revisit the situation in two weeks, when they may again consider demolishing the structure.
On Wednesday afternoon City Manage Mike Schrage said Mr. Joseph’s lender provided city staff a letter confirming that the bank has provided DFW Joseph Investments LLC a $1 million revolving line of credit and acknowledged they were “working on a second request" for Mr. Joseph in the amount of a $2 million loan.
Longbine said this did not meet the necessary threshold set by commissioners during the Monday meeting.