The City of Cayce held a community meeting Thursday evening to make sure residents of Churchill Heights in Cayce were clear on the affect of a new Fairfield Inn and Suites that will be built on Airport Boulevard. The hotel is next-door-to the neighborhood.

Cayce City Councilman Hunter Sox said the new hotel is a good development and could be an anchor for more commercial activity just outside of the Columbia Metropolitan Airport.

The meeting was held at The Landing Center. Lexington County Councilmen Todd Cullum and Todd Cockrell attended, along with Sox and Cayce City Councilman Phil Carter.

Cayce City Manager Mike Conley explained that the hotel is being built in a location that was already zoned “commercial.” He also said all zoning and building requirements have been met and have been throughout the planning process. Click here to see a video of the new hotel

Some residents showed up Thursday to express their concern that the hotel will negatively affect property values.

Cayce Police Chief Bruce Wade shared data with the gathering showing that the Churchill Heights neighborhood has generated more calls for police response in the last 27 months than a large hotel adjacent to the neighborhood.

Wade said police responded to 55 incidents in Churchill Heights in the last 2 years and three months, while responding to just 10 incidents at the Country Inn and Suites on Airport Boulevard, in the same time period.

Other questions arose about the aesthetics and proximity of the new facility.

Stephen Ramos, representing the Fairfield Inn team, explained there will be ample separation between the hotel and residents’ homes.

“There’s going to be a very dense buffer of landscaping around the perimeter of the project,” he said. “There’s also retention ponds on the back half of the property that are also providing another buffer.”

Ramos also said a masonry wall along one Churchill Heights street was looked into after hearing from residents, but residents that live directly across from the hotel objected. They said they would rather look at plants and foliage than a wall. Another possible addition includes a privacy fence around the two homes near the hotel entrance.  

Lexington County storm water staff also attended and said measures to mitigate water run-off from the hotel site have been taken.

Discussions with developers and City building and planning staff will continue as construction progresses.