West Midtown's newest boutique hotel is taking another step toward reality.

Developers of The Interlock mixed-use project off Howell Mill Road have filed permits with the city of Atlanta to begin development of the Bellyard Hotel. Permits call for an eight-story, 135K SF hotel that will be part of the $140M mixed-use Interlock project.

The hotel, which will be operated by Marriott, will include 161 rooms, a lobby restaurant and bar, and two floors of retail space, according to Boutique Hotel News. The project is being developed by S.J. Collins Enterprises.

S.J. Collins partner Jeff Garrison spoke at Bisnow's recent Gwinnett County event about how the developer was attempting to transcend simply being a fashionable development with the Interlock. That's because the cost of land inside the city is at a price that developers need to ensure a project will be popular with customers from day one.

“For us, in the urban environment, we're not really creating cool. We're becoming part of the existing fabric,” Garrison said. “I can tell you it's the most frustrating thing for a retail guy to be an afterthought. I do think communities have to be smart where mixed-use [works]. All those things need to be well-thought-out. [We've] got to be careful to put mixed-use where mixed-use wants to be.”