A feasibility study on a downtown Warren hotel and conference center is expected by the end of August.

The study is being done by Horwath Horizon, a hospitality consulting firm in Charlotte, N.C., with international credentials, according to Warren County Commissioner John Zavinski.

Among its various projects, Horwath Horizon has done studies for convention centers in New Orleans and at the universities of Texas and Maryland as well as for Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, Zavinski said.

A county tourism task force is looking at the viability of the proposed hotel and conference center in the former Loranger Mfg. building next to the Allegheny River along Clark St.

The site is part of Impact Warren, the downtown redevelopment project that seeks to multiply a $7 million investment by Northwest Savings Bank into $40 million through state and federal grants and loans.

The entire project involves retail stores, centralized public transit, senior citizen programs, parking, office buildings, entertainment and the hotel and convention center along with housing for seniors and townhouses at various middle-income ranges.

Funding for the study comes through a $22,500 state tourism grant funnelled through the Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning Commission.