A Tamaqua Area Chamber of Commerce breakfast on the need for temporary lodging in the area drew an almost standing room only crowd Friday morning. Held at the Tamaqua Community Arts Center, the breakfast meeting focused on the hotel study commissioned by the Tamaqua Area Community Partnership and ways the City Revitalization and Improvement Zone are used to improve the community.

Sen. David Argall explained how the CRIZ program was started and how Tamaqua is one of only three pilot programs in the state. The other two municipalities are Lancaster and Bethlehem. “This is a program designed to keep tax dollars in cities where growth is visibly happening. Tamaqua is one of those areas. These three municipalities will need to prove to the governor’s team the benefits of keeping a portion of tax dollars in communities rather than sending it all to Harrisburg.”

Micah Gursky, executive director of the Tamaqua Community Partnership, dug into the hotel needs study, which was conducted by REVPAR International, a hospitality advisory and asset management company.

The bad news is that “there is insufficient market support” for any of the mid or large hotel companies to construct a chain hotel in the area. The study reviewed the performances of hotels in the Hazleton, Pottsville and Lehighton/Jim Thorpe area, along with a projected future demand for rooms.

There just isn’t a demand, now or the foreseeable future, for a 50-70 room hotel in the Tamaqua area.

The good news is there is a demand for smaller temporary lodging facilities, such as bed-and-breakfasts and Airbnbs. The study documented the need for at least 20 rooms.

Gursky said the CRIZ program and temporary lodging could go hand in hand.

CRIZ funds may be used to purchase, construct or expand a business property within the CRIZ area. It doesn’t have to be paid back, but projects must match $1 in private funding for every $5 of CRIZ funding. The first step is to send a letter of intent to the CRIZ board, which meets at 6 p.m. on the third Monday of every month at Tamaqua Borough Hall, 320 E. Broad St. There is a specific process as well as guidelines, including the use of prevailing wages and the need for three bona fide bids. There is also an application fee, which is only required once the proposed project has preliminary board approval.

The bottom line, said Gursky, is that “There is a need in our area for small lodging places like a bed-and-breakfast or an Airbnb. Anyone interested in establishing either of those should definitely check into the possibility of CRIZ help.”