The old Truman Hotel could soon be demolished, but plans to construct a second hotel on the property are being delayed, according to an update given Tuesday to the Jefferson City Housing Authority Board of Commissioners.
Vivek Puri, vice president and general counsel of Puri Group Enterprises, and his father, Dr. Ravi Puri, purchased the 9-acre site in the 1500 block of Jefferson Street in 2013.
PGE built a new Holiday Inn & Suites on one part of the property and opened it in February.
Meanwhile, on the other part of the property, the old Truman Hotel building is still standing, for now.
Housing Authority Executive Director Cynthia Quetsch on Tuesday shared an email from Ravi Puri with the board, updating them on the project.
In the email, Ravi Puri said they hope to proceed with demolition of the building "before the weather turns cold."
PGE had planned - and received approval - to build a second hotel on the site, but those plans are currently on hold.
In the email, he said PGE doesn't feel Jefferson City's occupancy levels are high enough for another hotel because of the planned Courtyard by Marriott and redevelopment on the historic site of the original St. Mary's Hospital.
"The addition of this hotel will replace the remainder of the rooms we pulled out of the market when we shut down Truman," Puri said in the email.
Puri also said the Holiday Inn & Suites hotel has yet to achieve break-even occupancy. They are waiting to see the impact on the market caused by the additional rooms added by the Courtyard by Marriott.