CHANDLER - With one financing deal approved and another under consideration, Chandler-Brownsboro Area Chamber of Commerce officials believe they are "real close" to a deal that would bring a national motel chain to the city.

"We’ve been working hard on this motel situation," Chairman Dennis Mack said. "We’ve talked to several different companies and are lining up financing. We had a commitment (from one lender), but they wanted us to take more money than we could take on. We have another entity that’s interested."

An unnamed lender told CBACC it wanted to finance the project for $50 million.

"But we just don’t need that much, and this town can’t support it anyway," he said. "We’re looking at far less than that."

A motel here would have 50 to 100 rooms on the east side of town, Mack said, and is needed to provide accomodations to the tens of thousands who visit Chandler each year for its recreational and other events.

Mack "The problem is, when they come into town, they have to stay somewhere else. With all that’s going on here, we need a motel. We know the growth is coming this way."

The construction of Loop 49 and population projections in Smith and Henderson counties over the next two decades is expected to generate substantial economic development from Tyler to Brownsboro.

"We have no control of stopping it," Mack said. "We need to find a way to (grow) that benefits both communities."

Chandler is already moving in that direction. The SilverLeaf development, an $8 million apartment community on FM 2010, will offer about 80 units to fixed-income seniors. And city administrator Jim Moffeit has said officials want to focus on attracting more retailers and expanding the housing market here.

The city has talked to such franchises as Dairy Queen and KFC, and to others in Tyler.

"We are trying to get other businesses and restaurants," Mack said. "I’ve talked to a couple of people in Athens. We’ve also been trying to get a business park going, but we could not find a suitable piece of property for the right price."

Moreover, Chandler is preparing to possibly expand Winchester Park.

It has formalized a deal to purchase more than 29 acres at 802 Martin St. from Stanley McCurley, for $585,000.

McCurley is the city’s utilities superintendent.