Across the street from Georgia Aquarium, new hotel is underway, at last

For visitors seeking a whale of a good time in Atlanta, a new aquarium-adjacent hotel option downtown could soon be making a splash. (Ba dum tss!)

Vision Hospitality Group has broken ground on a 12-story, 170-room SpringHill Suites, across Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard from the Georgia Aquarium. According to HospitalityNet, the property will feature a 24-hour market, a business center, and a fitness center, aiming to appeal to both business travelers who want to stay close to downtown and leisure travelers visiting attractions around Centennial Olympic Park.

The site, across McAfee Street from a major power substation, has sat vacant for more than a year after a one-story medical building was torn down. The hotel fills most of the tiny block, leaving just one old warehouse building — which now serves as an architecture office — facing Mills Street and Centennial Place Apartments.

Just down the street, the Hyatt House Hotel opened last year, signifying the first major development along that stretch of Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard in years. A third new hotel could come to the area if the dual-branded Canopy/Homewood Suites proposal gets off the ground.

The SpringHill Suites opening is expected in spring 2018.

• Vision Hospitality Group Breaks Ground on SpringHill Suites by Marriott in Atlanta [HospitalityNet]