Flames took Hotel Marysville one year ago. What will take its place?

A concrete-covered mound of debris lies at the corner lot where Hotel Marysville towered for decades.

The downtown landmark, five stories tall and made of brick, defined Marysville’s modest skyline for nearly a century. But the hotel devolved from an icon to an eyesore in the decades preceding its demolition late last year, months after a fire tore through its long-vacant interior the night of Saturday, June 15, 2024.

“It took so long to bring the thing down and then put it into the condition it’s in now, that mound at the same location,” said Mayor Chris Branscum. “But we’re making progress.”

A year later the remnants of brick and debris remain entombed at the corner of E and Fifth streets, covered in a concrete spray and dubbed by some “Mount Marysville.” After settling a lawsuit with the building owners that transferred the property’s title, and $700,000, to the city of Marysville, the city had the funds to knock the safety hazard down, but not to haul it away.

Now city officials, who recently had the mound tested and confirmed its materials were not toxic, expect to clear the bricks and concrete sometime this year, Branscum said.

After the fire, asbestos concerns arose, among other potential safety hazards, including crumbling debris, which caused a section of E Street to close and blocked northbound traffic from Highway 70, causing traffic-related headaches for months.

A hazardous finding would have required relocating the materials to a designated site that could have cost millions of dollars, Branscum said. But the nonhazardous result means that trucking away the mound could cost within the mid-six-figure range.

The city had sought an Environmental Protection Agency grant last year to pay for the removal cost, but missed the grant cycle at the time. Now officials are working on another outside funding solution to clear the lot, or the city will need to cover the expense.

“That decision should be made within the next few months, maybe sooner,” Branscum said of the funding source.

What will replace it?

But what will be built where the hotel once stood, and who will build it?

The city took ownership of the building after settling its ongoing dispute with the property owners, which transferred responsibility of demolition to taxpayers. With the property also came the responsibility of what to do with it.

“We are not a real estate developer,” Branscum said. “We’re not in that business.”

The city may look to another recent property as an example.

Ground broke last year at a property on B Street, on the northeast side of Ellis Lake, that Marysville officials for years had sought to develop. The city brought on a real estate broker to find and negotiate with developers for that property, where developers have planned to build a Hyatt Hotel, Starbucks and Grocery Outlet.

Branscum said the city may choose a similar path for selling and developing the space where Hotel Marysville stood. Although no longer standing, the city must first get rid of the old landmark’s remains before deciding on its replacement.

This story was originally published June 12, 2025 at 5:00 AM.