Wampold buys site near Marriott for a hotel and restaurant

Developer Mike Wampold has plans for a new hotel and restaurant on a 2.5-acre tract he purchased Wednesday across from the Marriott Hotel at 5500 Hilton Avenue. Wampold paid $1.35 million for the property, which extends from Corporate Boulevard all the way back to Bankers Avenue, after eyeing it for a long time. The property was owned by the T.D. Bickham Estate and only recently became available. “I think it’s a great potential restaurant and hotel site,” Wampold says. “That site has great visibility from the interstate and from Corporate Boulevard, and there is not much land left. I just saw it as an opportunity.” Wampold says he would like to see a restaurant along the lines of upscale casual dining chain Houston’s get developed on the site, adding that he’s not in negotiations with any specific restaurant chain at the moment. A hotel is not likely before 2014, he says, though a restaurant could open sooner. —Stephanie Riegel