Proposed Athens hotel behind storied UGA ‘President’s House’ faces pushback
Neighbors, including R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe, try to stop development on 5-acre lot that Georgia university is selling.
The University of Georgia's President's House on Prince Avenue as photographed Thursday, Oct. 30, 2003. A developer wants to build a hotel on the five-acre property in Athens. (Bita Honarvar/AJC file)
By Rebecca McCarthy – For the AJC
4 hours ago
ATHENS — Long before the start of a recent meeting of the Athens-Clarke County Planning Commission, attendees had claimed most of the seats. The air conditioning wasn’t working, but people kept piling into the stuffy room, leaning against walls, sitting on the floor and bringing their own chairs, until more than 100 were packed inside.
Most came to hear about a proposed 116-room hotel behind an iconic 169-year-old mansion known as the President’s House. With its massive, two-storied columns, it’s considered one of Georgia’s finest Greek Revival houses.
ATHENS — Long before the start of a recent meeting of the Athens-Clarke County Planning Commission, attendees had claimed most of the seats. The air conditioning wasn’t working, but people kept piling into the stuffy room, leaning against walls, sitting on the floor and bringing their own chairs, until more than 100 were packed inside.
Most came to hear about a proposed 116-room hotel behind an iconic 169-year-old mansion known as the President’s House. With its massive, two-storied columns, it’s considered one of Georgia’s finest Greek Revival houses.
Many residents, backed by preservationists, are opposing the redevelopment plan after the University System of Georgia put the five-acre property, which includes the mansion and gardens, up for sale.
Developer Jeff Payne of Gainesville told the planning commission — a citizen group that recommends projects for approval to the County Commission — that he’s seeking to have the property in the leafy Boulevard neighborhood rezoned from a government to a commercial neighborhood.
In addition to building an 88,000-square-foot hotel, Payne wants to renovate the historic 570 Prince Ave. mansion to house a restaurant, bar and bedroom suite. Plans include an underground parking facility, moving two historic buildings to the back of the property, and having Hilton manage the hotel.
Developer Jeff Payne of Gainesville told the planning commission — a citizen group that recommends projects for approval to the County Commission — that he’s seeking to have the property in the leafy Boulevard neighborhood rezoned from a government to a commercial neighborhood.
In addition to building an 88,000-square-foot hotel, Payne wants to renovate the historic 570 Prince Ave. mansion to house a restaurant, bar and bedroom suite. Plans include an underground parking facility, moving two historic buildings to the back of the property, and having Hilton manage the hotel.
A rendering of the hotel that developer Jeff Payne wants to build in Athens on a 5-acre lot that the University System of Georgia is selling and which includes a 19th-century mansion that has housed many University of Georgia presidents. (rendering by the architectural firm Arcolab)
Among those at the packed meeting earlier this month wasMichael Stipe, formerly R.E.M.’s lead singer, who bought his home on Grady Avenue in the 1980s, before Boulevard became the tidy, expensive neighborhood it is today.
Among those at the packed meeting earlier this month wasMichael Stipe, formerly R.E.M.’s lead singer, who bought his home on Grady Avenue in the 1980s, before Boulevard became the tidy, expensive neighborhood it is today.
“My property abuts the land they’re discussing, and I think this is a terrible idea,” he says. “I’ve lived in hotels my entire adult life, and this is just ... terrible. And it’s a money grab.”
Payne, of Capstone Property Group, is also seeking a variance since the commercial neighborhood designation would limit the hotel to 10,000 square feet. And he wants to move off-site parking 1,200 feet from the house, 1,000 feet more than what the zoning allows.
The county’s planning staff supports the commercial neighborhood rezoning, but not the scale of the project. The County Commission will have the final say.
The county’s planning staff supports the commercial neighborhood rezoning, but not the scale of the project. The County Commission will have the final say.
Payne contends a smaller hotel would mean more surface parking and less green space because it wouldn’t justify the expense of building an underground facility.
“A vastly smaller project could not generate the revenue needed to restore the home to Secretary of the Interior standards, preserve it long term or open it to the public,” adds Payne, whose group developed a Marriott in Gainesville it billed as the city’s biggest hotel when it opened in 2023.
The university system put the Athens property, home to several University of Georgia presidents over many decades, up for sale in July 2024 for $5.1 million. The system and UGA declined to comment on the hotel redevelopment proposal.
“A vastly smaller project could not generate the revenue needed to restore the home to Secretary of the Interior standards, preserve it long term or open it to the public,” adds Payne, whose group developed a Marriott in Gainesville it billed as the city’s biggest hotel when it opened in 2023.
The university system put the Athens property, home to several University of Georgia presidents over many decades, up for sale in July 2024 for $5.1 million. The system and UGA declined to comment on the hotel redevelopment proposal.
In announcing the planned sale in 2023, UGA said it was increasingly expensive to maintain the 10,852-square-foot mansion, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It sits a little less than a mile northwest of the campus. The university has said sale proceeds will be used “to support student success initiatives at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels,” but hasn’t shared details.
In announcing the planned sale in 2023, UGA said it was increasingly expensive to maintain the 10,852-square-foot mansion, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It sits a little less than a mile northwest of the campus. The university has said sale proceeds will be used “to support student success initiatives at the undergraduate, graduate and professional levels,” but hasn’t shared details.
Athens residents packed an Athens-Clarke County Planning Commission meeting on Thursday, Sept. 4, 2025 to discuss a proposed hotel. Parker Henderson of Hilton's Graduate division of hotels is at the podium. (Rebecca McCarthy for the AJC)
Asking for a variance to create something eight times larger than what the requested commercial neighborhood zoning allows shows that Payne isn’t interested in preservation, “he’s interested in making big bank,” says Blair Dorminey, who lives a block from the President’s House. “You would be awarding a windfall of profit to an outside developer.”
Jason Taylor, president of the Boulevard Neighborhood Association, says his organization worries about the proposed scale of the hotel, as well as the associated noise, traffic problems and excessive stormwater the hotel could produce.
Across Prince Avenue, the trustees of the Historic Cobbham Foundation have several recommendations for Payne: Downsize the project to 30,000–37,800 square feet, protect green space and historic resources through easements, and mitigate traffic. Doing these things will “avoid setting an outsized precedent for future planned developments in Athens,” the foundation says.
Athens does need “hundreds” more hotel rooms, according to Katie Williams, head of the Convention and Visitors Bureau. There’s a new arena bringing in bigger ticket entertainers, more people want to attend UGA athletic events and soon there will be a new medical school. But she’s not endorsing the proposed hotel, nor its location.
Asking for a variance to create something eight times larger than what the requested commercial neighborhood zoning allows shows that Payne isn’t interested in preservation, “he’s interested in making big bank,” says Blair Dorminey, who lives a block from the President’s House. “You would be awarding a windfall of profit to an outside developer.”
Jason Taylor, president of the Boulevard Neighborhood Association, says his organization worries about the proposed scale of the hotel, as well as the associated noise, traffic problems and excessive stormwater the hotel could produce.
Across Prince Avenue, the trustees of the Historic Cobbham Foundation have several recommendations for Payne: Downsize the project to 30,000–37,800 square feet, protect green space and historic resources through easements, and mitigate traffic. Doing these things will “avoid setting an outsized precedent for future planned developments in Athens,” the foundation says.
Athens does need “hundreds” more hotel rooms, according to Katie Williams, head of the Convention and Visitors Bureau. There’s a new arena bringing in bigger ticket entertainers, more people want to attend UGA athletic events and soon there will be a new medical school. But she’s not endorsing the proposed hotel, nor its location.
A rendering of the proposed hotel development, which would convert the University of Georgia's 19th-century 'President's House' into a restaurant, bar and bedroom suite. (Arcolab)
After 1949, most UGA presidents lived in the house with their families during their tenures. Bess Aderhold, whose husband O.C. was president from 1950 until 1967, used to invite freshmen students and their families into the house for a party every school year. For decades, presidents held receptions there for new faculty members, pregame activities for football fans, Arts & Sciences faculty members and campus visitors. There were dinners for members of the UGA Athletic Association, the UGA Research Foundation, the Arch Foundation and high-ticket donors.
After 1949, most UGA presidents lived in the house with their families during their tenures. Bess Aderhold, whose husband O.C. was president from 1950 until 1967, used to invite freshmen students and their families into the house for a party every school year. For decades, presidents held receptions there for new faculty members, pregame activities for football fans, Arts & Sciences faculty members and campus visitors. There were dinners for members of the UGA Athletic Association, the UGA Research Foundation, the Arch Foundation and high-ticket donors.
“I’d like to know how much money we raised in that house,” former president Michael Adams has said. Like his predecessor Chuck Knapp, Adams moved out of the President’s House before leaving office, tired of living in a “fishbowl.”
UGA officials say it needs a new HVAC system and other work. In 2009, records show, the university spent $220,000 tending to the house and grounds. In 2010, the President’s House got a $950,000 makeover, which included installing an elevator, renovating the kitchen and making other parts of the house handicap accessible.
UGA officials say it needs a new HVAC system and other work. In 2009, records show, the university spent $220,000 tending to the house and grounds. In 2010, the President’s House got a $950,000 makeover, which included installing an elevator, renovating the kitchen and making other parts of the house handicap accessible.
Current UGA President Jere Morehead moved into the house in 2013 and stayed until 2022, when he relocated to a house he had bought in town.
The President's House, a 19th-century mansion, as viewed from Prince Avenue, in Athens, Georgia. (Rebecca McCarthy for the AJC)
Before putting the house on the market, the Board of Regents met with officials from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation to discuss possible protections, according to Wright Mitchell, CEO of the trust.
The regents have stated “Any purchaser is required as a condition of sale to protect the historic character of the front façade and exterior of the house and the formal garden fronting Prince Avenue through a conservation easement or other recorded encumbrance.”
Before putting the house on the market, the Board of Regents met with officials from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation to discuss possible protections, according to Wright Mitchell, CEO of the trust.
The regents have stated “Any purchaser is required as a condition of sale to protect the historic character of the front façade and exterior of the house and the formal garden fronting Prince Avenue through a conservation easement or other recorded encumbrance.”
Having reviewed Payne’s plan for the property, the Georgia Trust says it’s too dense, making it incompatible with Secretary of the Interior standards and the terms and conditions for the Trust to hold such an easement.
A revised plan from the developer could come later this fall.
“We are actively listening to community and planning commission feedback and are considering all options to reduce the square footage of the hotel to better align with neighborhood context,” Payne says.
Having reviewed Payne’s plan for the property, the Georgia Trust says it’s too dense, making it incompatible with Secretary of the Interior standards and the terms and conditions for the Trust to hold such an easement.
A revised plan from the developer could come later this fall.
“We are actively listening to community and planning commission feedback and are considering all options to reduce the square footage of the hotel to better align with neighborhood context,” Payne says.
A rendering of the proposed development. The white building farthest to the left is the 19th-century mansion currently standing on the property. The proposed main hotel complex is shown behind the mansion, to the right. (Arcolab)
