QUICK SUMMARY
As of September 2026, Northport is lining up the biggest set of downtown and riverfront changes the city has seen in decades. On September 1, the Northport City Council gave first readings to sell two city-owned parcels at Northport Shore for at least $2.2 million combined: one for a family-focused, sports-oriented extended-stay hotel behind the championship baseball field, and one for a luxury hotel plus an indoor sports facility of at least 100,000 square feet. On Monday, September 21, 2026, the council approved both sales and the development agreement, which requires the buyer to invest at least $52 million or give the land back. That vote followed a public hearing on the city’s development agreement. The same night, the council approved buying about 1.9 acres between Lurleen Wallace Boulevard, Bridge Avenue and 10th Street for a new City Hall, and three major road rebuilds are already underway.
SEPTEMBER 21, 2026 UPDATE: APPROVED
The Northport City Council approved the Northport Shore development agreement and both land sales on September 21, 2026. The deal requires at least $52 million in private investment for two 100-plus-room hotels and a 100,000-square-foot indoor sports facility next to River Run Park. Jump to what was approved.
The Williams Group at Keller Williams Realty has sold homes in Northport for years, and we get the same question every time a project like this makes the news: what does it mean for my house? This article lays out what was decided, what is still pending, and how we think about it for Northport homeowners and buyers. Last updated: September 2026 (revised September 23, 2026 after the September 21 council vote).
Key Takeaways
1. Two Northport Shore parcels are proposed for sale to H D Land Holdings LLC: one appraised at $1.2 million for a sports-oriented extended-stay hotel, and one for at least $1 million (appraisal pending) for a luxury hotel and a 100,000-plus square foot indoor sports facility.
2. The council gave final approval on September 21, 2026. The agreement requires at least $52 million in private investment, at least 100 rooms in each hotel, and a land disturbance permit within nine months. Hotel brands and opening dates have not been announced.
3. The city approved buying roughly 1.9 acres from Tanyard Corners LLC for a new City Hall and is negotiating for more nearby parcels. No construction cost or timeline has been released.
4. Lurleen Wallace Boulevard, the Fifth Street intersection and Main Avenue are all under construction. Expect orange cones through 2027.
5. For homeowners, the near-term story is construction disruption; the longer-term story is more visitors, more downtown activity and more city revenue in a town whose property tax rate is already lower than Tuscaloosa’s.
What did Northport approve on September 21, 2026?
On Monday, September 21, 2026, the Northport City Council took three votes: one on the development agreement and one on each of the two land sales to H D Land Holdings LLC, the company led by developer Will Hewson. All three passed. Councilwoman Jamie Conger abstained on each vote. A public hearing was held first, and no residents spoke.
The Family Hotel parcel: Sold for $1.2 million. The agreement calls for a sports-focused, family-friendly extended-stay or select-service hotel with at least 100 rooms and a minimum investment of $12 million.
The Championship Hotel and sports facility parcel: Sold for at least $1 million, with the final price tied to an appraisal. It calls for an upscale, full-service hotel with at least 100 rooms, a restaurant open seven days a week, a full-service bar and a pool, plus an indoor sports facility of at least 100,000 square feet for basketball, volleyball and gymnastics tournaments. Minimum investment: $40 million.
Deadlines with teeth: The developer has nine months after the deed is recorded to get a land disturbance permit and 30 days after that to start construction. If either deadline is missed, the city can refund the purchase price and take the land back. The project must be kept going for at least 32 years.
No city tax incentives: According to the Tuscaloosa Thread, the city did not grant tax incentives as part of the deal.
What this means for nearby homeowners: the Northport Shore plan is now a signed deal with deadlines, not just a proposal. It is still a construction project that has not broken ground, so we would not price a home as if the hotels were already open.
What did the Northport City Council do on September 1?
The council held first readings on two ordinances to sell city-owned land at Northport Shore, the riverfront sports and recreation district that opened with River Run Park in August 2025. First reading means the items were introduced and discussed, not approved.
Parcel 1: the sports hotel. This lot sits directly behind the outfield of the championship baseball field. It has been appraised at $1.2 million, and the city proposes selling it for that amount. The plan is a family-oriented, sports-oriented extended-stay hotel built for teams and families who travel to Northport for youth tournaments.
Parcel 2: the luxury hotel and indoor complex. This lot is between the sewer treatment plant and the river. The city proposes selling it for at least $1 million, but the appraisal is still pending, so the final price could be higher. The plan here is much bigger: a luxury hotel and an indoor sports facility of at least 100,000 square feet.
The September 1 agenda identified H D Land Holdings LLC as the proposed buyer of both parcels. Specific hotel brands, room counts, which sports the indoor facility will serve, construction costs and opening dates were not disclosed. Both ordinances came back before the council on September 21 and passed, after a public hearing and a vote on an amendment to the city’s development agreement covering the two parcels. No one spoke against the sales at the September 1 meeting.
How does this fit with River Run Park and the original Northport Shore plan?
A hotel and an indoor facility have been part of the Northport Shore plan from the start. In June 2024 the council hired an Indiana-based development group to develop “an indoor sports facility or combination of facilities” of at least 100,000 square feet and a hotel with at least 100 rooms next to the fields. Council President Christy Bobo summed up the vision as “somewhere to stay, somewhere to play.” River Run Park, the $27 million, nine-field tournament complex, opened first in August 2025 and was booked with tournaments into the fall of that year. In September 2025, city leaders projected that the finished development could draw more than half a million visitors a year.
The September 1 first readings are the step that turns the hotel and indoor facility from a concept into specific land sales with a specific buyer. That is why this month matters. For the full background on River Run Park, including how the fields were funded and how tournament weekends work, see our earlier post on River Run Park and what it means for home values.
Own a home in Northport and wondering what all this activity means for your value? Get a free home valuation from The Williams Group, or call or text 205-292-2108.
Where will the new Northport City Hall go?
Also on September 1, the council voted to buy about 1.9 acres between Lurleen Wallace Boulevard, Bridge Avenue and 10th Street from Tanyard Corners LLC. City Administrator Tera Tubbs confirmed the site is where the city proposes to put a new City Hall. The council also authorized the administrator to start negotiating for additional parcels between Lurleen Wallace Boulevard and Bridge Avenue to assemble the full site. Any further purchase has to come back to the council for a vote.
A nearby business owner questioned the price during the meeting. He said he understood the purchase to be about $1.56 million for the 1.9 acres, which works out to far more per acre than an appraisal he received for right-of-way on the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard project. City officials did not state the purchase price during the presentation. They said the City Hall parcel was professionally appraised using nearby sales, including a property at Fifth Street and Bridge Avenue and one facing Lurleen Wallace Boulevard, and that the MLK Boulevard right-of-way process was a federally funded acquisition handled by ALDOT under different rules.
Still unknown as of this writing: the total construction cost of the new City Hall, the total land cost once the site is assembled, and a construction timeline.
Which Northport roads are under construction right now?
At the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama’s State of the Community event in August, Mayor Dale Phillips joked that Northport may be “the Orange Cone Capital of the World” for the next few years. He was not exaggerating. Three major projects are underway at once:
Lurleen Wallace Boulevard from the bridge into the city, the main route between downtown Tuscaloosa and downtown Northport.
The Fifth Street and Lurleen Wallace intersection.
Main Avenue, the spine of historic downtown Northport.
Much of this work is funded through the Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Commission (TCRIC), the sales-tax program that Mayor Walt Maddox said has put nearly $200 million into state road projects across the county since 2016. Separately, ALDOT’s project to widen McFarland Boulevard’s Woolsey-Finnell Bridge to eight lanes is coming, and that one will affect nearly every Northport commuter. The new City Hall site and the road projects sit in the same few blocks, so downtown Northport will look like a construction zone for a while.
What could this mean for Northport home values and neighborhoods?
We do not publish predictions about what any project will do to prices, and no one should. Here is how we think about the mechanics instead.
More visitors, more weekends. Tournament families need places to eat, shop and sleep. Two hotels at Northport Shore would keep more of that spending inside Northport instead of across the river. Downtown restaurants along Main Avenue and the businesses on Highway 82 and Highway 69 North are the first to feel that.
Short-term rental interest. Youth sports tourism is one of the steadiest drivers of short-term rental demand, and it does not depend on the Alabama football schedule. If you own a home near downtown Northport, Kentuck Park or the river, read our short-term rental guide before you assume anything about local rules.
Construction fatigue is real but temporary. Sellers on streets near Lurleen Wallace, Fifth Street and Main Avenue should expect showing-day traffic headaches through 2027. Buyers who can see past the cones often get a better deal than they will once the work is done.
City revenue without a tax hike. Northport’s property tax rate is 38.5 mills compared with Tuscaloosa’s 51.5, as we explained in our Tuscaloosa vs. Northport property tax comparison. Land sales, hotel lodging taxes and tournament-weekend sales tax are the kinds of revenue a sports-tourism plan is built on, and they do not come out of homeowners’ pockets. That said, the new City Hall is a cost, not a revenue source, and residents should watch the numbers when they are released.
The bigger picture. Add the University Beach lagoon resort on Highway 82, the proposed Townes at North Lake homes, and steady commercial interest along Highway 69 North, and Northport is adding amenities at a pace the city has not seen before. Buyers who chose Northport for quiet streets and a lower tax bill are now getting the amenities too.
A local perspective from The Williams Group
Northport buyers tell us the same three things year after year: they want a little more house for the money than Tuscaloosa, a shorter drive to the lake, and a downtown that feels like a small town. The Northport Shore hotels and the indoor complex do not change that. They add reasons for people who do not live here yet to spend a weekend in town, and that is how a lot of families first discover a place they later move to.
Two practical notes. If you are selling near downtown this fall, we will plan showings around the road work and tell buyers up front what is being built and when. If you are buying, ask about the 2026 Northport permit fee changes before you plan a renovation, and check where a property sits relative to the Lurleen Wallace and Main Avenue projects. Our Complete Guide to Living in Northport covers neighborhoods, schools and commute routes in detail, and our September 2026 Tuscaloosa County market report has the current numbers.
Thinking about buying in Northport before the hotels open? Browse our Northport guide or call or text 205-292-2108 to talk with a TWG agent who works this market every week.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Northport Shore indoor sports facility approved?
Yes, the land deal is approved. On September 21, 2026, the Northport City Council approved the development agreement and both land sales to H D Land Holdings LLC. The agreement calls for an indoor sports facility of at least 100,000 square feet. Construction has not started yet, and the developer has nine months after the deed is recorded to get a land disturbance permit.
When will the Northport Shore hotels open?
No opening dates have been announced. The September 21, 2026 agreement sets start deadlines rather than opening dates: a land disturbance permit within nine months of the deed being recorded, then construction within 30 days. Each hotel must have at least 100 rooms. Brands have not been named.
Where is Northport Shore?
Northport Shore is the city’s riverfront sports and recreation district on the Black Warrior River next to Kentuck Park, anchored by River Run Park’s nine tournament fields. The proposed hotel parcels are behind the championship field and between the sewer treatment plant and the river.
Will the new City Hall raise my Northport property taxes?
Nothing approved on September 1 changes Northport’s millage rate, which is 38.5 mills. The city has not released a construction budget or a funding plan for the building. Any change to property tax rates would require separate public action, so watch council agendas this fall and winter.
How long will the Lurleen Wallace Boulevard construction last?
The city has not published a single end date for all three downtown projects. Mayor Phillips described the road work as lasting “the next few years.” Plan on lane shifts and delays on Lurleen Wallace, Fifth Street and Main Avenue through at least 2027.
How The Williams Group can help
We track Northport council agendas because our clients live with the results. If you want to know how a specific project affects a specific street, ask us. We will give you what is approved, what is proposed and what is only talk, and we will not dress up a rumor as a fact.
Buying or selling in Northport this year?
Talk with a local agent who knows the neighborhoods, the road projects and the council calendar.
Call or Text 205-292-2108Get a Free Home Valuation
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Sources
ABC 33/40, Two hotels, massive indoor sports facility proposed for Northport Shore development (September 2, 2026: parcel details, prices, H D Land Holdings LLC, September 21 timeline) and Northport moves forward with new City Hall, approves land purchase and seeks more property (September 2, 2026: 1.9-acre purchase, Tanyard Corners LLC, appraisal discussion). Tuscaloosa Thread, Maddox, Phillips and Robertson Detail Nearly $200 Million in Road Projects Underway (August 13, 2026: Lurleen Wallace, Fifth Street, Main Avenue, TCRIC, Woolsey-Finnell Bridge) and Indiana Firm to Develop Indoor Sports Facilities and Hotel at Northport Shore (June 3, 2024: original 100-key hotel and 100,000 sq ft facility agreement). WVUA 23, City enters $3.7M agreement for Northport Shore sports complex development (Council President Bobo quote, private developer commitment). ABC 33/40, Northport council to discuss partnership for sports complex development (September 21, 2025: visitor projections, River Run Park opening and bookings). Tuscaloosa County Tax Assessor current millage chart via our property tax comparison. Tuscaloosa Thread, Northport Approves $52 Million Deal for Two Hotels, Indoor Sports Facility by River Run Park (September 22, 2026: the three September 21 votes, parcel prices, room and investment minimums, deadlines and reversion terms).