VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — The first portion of a $75,000 study into a proposed Convention Center district found the development would be “feasible.”

However, what remains outstanding is how much it may cost taxpayers to make it happen.

Last Thursday, consults from CBRE, the world’s largest commercial real estate agency, presented their findings to Virginia Beach City Council on how much of Capstone Development’s proposal could provide a return on investment.

The Maryland-based developer was the only one to respond to a request for information from the city to develop 13 acres of parking lot between Virginia Beach Boulevard and 19th Street in front of the Virginia Beach Convention Center.

Capstone is proposing more than 900 new apartments with first-floor retail, 3,500 new parking spots and at least a 300-room convention center hotel.

The analysis found that the project could be profitable, even if it was larger.

However, it soon became clear council members weren’t ready to move the proposal along.

Councilman Worth Remick said he had hoped to learn more about the demand that was needed for assets such as the hotel.

“It’s not exactly what I had asked for or wanted because it was really a feasibility study and not a study … to show demand,” said Remick, who represents the area. “There was nothing in the study that said that the hotels rooms were needed as a result of the convention center. What the study did was show a need for a hotel, and it justified it without land costs.”

The city currently owns the land that provides parking for the convention center. For years, there has been talk of adding a hotel to try and boost the number of events at the convention center. An audit last year found it operates at a loss of roughly $2 million.

However, the proposal by Capstone hasn’t been welcomed with open arms by some resort business owners. Others have suggested the city finish the projects they have currently before moving on.

“We can walk and chew bubble gum at the same time,” Remick said. “This has been looked at for four decades.”

City Manager Patrick Duhaney reminded council members that they did not need to do everything the proposal said.

Remick, for instance, said he is not a fan of the apartments, but is a fan of parking.

“Parking is paramount because, [as] we look at it, … we need parking spaces today,” Remick said. “It’s here almost Dec. 1, off-season, and we need parking. We’ll have a high season. We need parking. And so, when you build a parking deck here, is there something else like a hotel that can be worked into that?”

Duhaney said the City Council will likely reconsider what next steps to take following the conclusion of a central beach long-term plan next year.