I've been wondering for a while why Charlottesville's Landmark hotel (Dewberry?) is still sitting vacant for all these years. My hunch is holding costs have something to do with it. Let's do some math! 
According to city tax records gisweb.charlottesville.org/GisViewer/# , the property is assessed at a cool $6,899,500 so the .95% property tax means an annual $65,545.25 tax bill, much more than the median household income.
Is this a lot to the land owner though? A quick google search suggests an annual revenue of over $122 million, making this tax bill equal about .05% of annual revenue enr.com/blogs/6-southe…
Compared to the average Charlottesville household, this is roughly the cost of a pizza and a tip for the delivery driver.
At the same time, the property has actually gained in value while actively harming surrounding property values. Since buying the property in 2012, it's almost doubled in value if the City's math is right.
I'm trying to find a comparison with the stock exchange but not having much luck quickly. I'm pretty sure investors have not doubled their money in stocks since 2012.
So why doesn't Dewberry build? If my math is right, they've got a good thing going, since their asset is growing quickly and their annual holding costs are low. As long as taxes are low, Dewberry should not build.
