3CDC to acquire long-vacant Garfield Suites Hotel

3CDC is targeting one of Downtown Cincinnati’s most prominent vacancies for redevelopment.

The nonprofit developer has secured a purchase agreement to acquire the 16-story Garfield Suites Hotel at 2 Garfield Place for $3.75 million. It said in a statement that it expects to close soon.

The building, originally constructed in 1981, has sat vacant for about a decade following multiple stalled renovation attempts by its previous owner.

The deal stems from a receivership sale process after the property became available in August 2025. A court appointed Jeff Lane, CEO of Prodigy Properties, to oversee the sale. 3CDC said the receiver reviewed multiple offers before selecting its proposal.

For 3CDC, the timing came down to opportunity.

“In real estate, successful investment requires patience and a strategic, long-term approach,” the organization said in a statement. “When the building became available for purchase last August, we recognized it as a key asset offering a significant development opportunity and moved quickly to secure it.”

Better connecting downtown

The property’s location is a big part of that strategy. It sits along a key stretch of Vine Street, near the recently renovated Downtown Cincinnati Public Library and a block from Court Street Plaza — an area that has seen significant public and private investment in recent years.

3CDC has been central to that transformation, investing nearly $125 million in the Court Street Plaza area since 2021 alongside its partners.

Katie Westbrook, 3CDC’s executive vice president of development, described the Vine Street corridor between Seventh and Court streets as a critical link connecting Fountain Square and the central business district to Over-the-Rhine. She said reactivating the Garfield Suites site is a missing piece in that connection.

3CDC hasn’t finalized its redevelopment plans. However, Westbrook said the team is exploring a mixed-use concept.

“It’s critical to reactivate this site along Vine Street,” Westbrook said. “We’re in the beginning stages of analyzing what that future could look like.”