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The on-again, off-again project for a headquarters hotel 鈥� a 600-room facility intended to attract larger events to the Oregon Convention Center 鈥� appears to be off again 鈥� at least at one possible location.

The Portland Development Commission recently issued a request for information from developers interested in redeveloping the Inn at the Convention Center and its neighboring parking structure. The PDC purchased the block in 2002 as part of a plan to eventually construct a two-block hotel. Officials say talks are ongoing about such a project, but the RFI would remove the proposed lot from the discussion.

The five-story, 97-room Inn at the Convention Center, built in 1964, is operated by Red Lion. A year-to-year lease includes a clause with a 30-day notice to move out, according to PDC spokesman Shawn Uhlman, so that the PDC and Metro could move forward with the headquarters hotel project at a moment’s notice.

The RFI is only the first step in development of the property, but PDC officials already have some ideas.

鈥淭he standard we are looking for is something along the lines of what they did with Hotel Modera,鈥� said Irene Bowers, a senior project manager with the PDC.

According to the RFI, 鈥淧DC envisions the renovated hotel as an upscale, 90-plus-room limited-service property with an active ground-floor use that could aid in invigorating the surrounding streets鈥︹��

Uhlman added that much like Hotel Modera, the redevelopment should appeal to visitors as well as people who work in the area.

With awareness that hotels like the one desired can be risky projects, Bowers said the PDC is willing to use the land value as public investment. A new appraisal is being conducted and is expected to be finished sometime this month.

The PDC is moving forward now, according to Uhlman, because the is set to expire in 2013, and any money used on the project must be allocated before the district expires.

鈥淚t’s the right time for the project,鈥� he said. 鈥淭his would not preclude the HQ (hotel) project; it just means that this block is off the books. We still look at the projects as parallel efforts.鈥�

Headquarters hotel discussions have taken place in Portland for nearly a decade, and the project formerly was targeted for the Inn at the Convention Center lot and a neighboring, PDC-owned lot that is presently being converted into a temporary plaza.

Hotel talks died down a few years ago because of the onset of the recession and no concrete plans. But the proposal regained momentum earlier this year when new Metro President Tom Hughes started publicly expressing his desire for a headquarters hotel.

According to Jeff Blosser, executive director of the Oregon Convention Center, there are ongoing discussions about cost of a proposed headquarters hotel, but he declined to describe it as an actual project yet. While the Inn at the Convention Center property may be out of the question, he added, the plaza lot and a few other area properties could work.

鈥淚t would be nice to have an upscale boutique hotel close to the convention center because it gives attendees more choices,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut with this project we wouldn’t be adding any rooms, which is what we need. We’re still always looking to get a bigger room block in the area.鈥�

According to the RFI, if a redevelopment project were to move forward at the Inn at the Convention Center, the developer would be required to work in conjunction with Metro on anything involving the headquarters hotel project to prevent conflicts. But the developer would not be required to alter or delay their project in any way.

Responses to the RFI must be submitted by Sept. 2 at 3 p.m. Voluntary tours of the property will take place from Wednesday through Aug. 9.