An old farmhouse could make way for a seven-story hotel and 30,000-square-foot convention center on South River Road in Bedford, bringing more economic growth to the area.

The proposed complex would be located at 379 South River Road, about a mile south of the Everett Turnpike overpass on 11 acres owned by the James W. Dwire Revocable Trust, according to town records. Today, the land is home to a four-bedroom farmhouse, across South River Road from Harvey Road and bordered on the opposite side by Technology Drive.

The development would also be roughly 1 mile north of the new airport access road that is under construction. Town officials hailed the project as a harbinger of the kind of economic growth that will be fueled by the access road.

The proposed 70-foot-tall hotel would be the third on the stretch of South River Road between the Everett Turnpike overpass and Merrimack. Closer to the Everett are a Hampton Inn and Suites and Country Inn and Suites by Carlson, which opened this year. The proposed convention center would the largest of three in Bedford, nearly double the size of the Wayfarer Convention Center, which is approximately 15,000 square feet, said town assessor Bill Ingalls. That center is attached to a hotel, but about half of its 175 rooms are due to be razed and turned into a parking lot for a supermarket and two retail buildings.

The only other similar venue is The Event Center at C.R. Sparks, which shares a 26,800-square-foot building with a lounge and the C.R. Sparks restaurant.

C.R. Sparks will be torn down at the end of this year to make way for a new Lexus dealership, possibly leaving the town with one less convention center.

C.R. Sparks owner Chuck Rolecek has said he wants to relocate somewhere else in Bedford. Town planner Rick Sawyer said there is a market for more convention space in Bedford because of the airport access road.

“I think that will be something in high demand as the airport continues to grow and as our access in Bedford continues to improve,” Sawyer said.

Bill Dermody, a town councilor who has been heading up efforts to stimulate more economic development in town, favors the proposed hotel and convention center in Bedford. “I think something like that would be exciting for this town,” Dermody said. “I think it’s good news for the town.”

Dermody said the hotel-convention center project could attract other businesses to move into the area around the airport access road. He said the location might appeal to software and high-tech companies. Dermody has touted economic development as a way to offset residential property taxes.

Leed Development is the developer, town records show. The address and phone number listed for the company are the same as TFMoran Inc., an engineering firm in Bedford. Bob Duval, the chief engineer for the firm, said TFMoran is not ready to release any information on the development.

The development would be in a performance zone, where issues that would normally be addressed as variances by the Zoning Board can be dealt with by the Planning Board as waivers, streamlining the approval process, Sawyer said. The Planning Board will have a nonbinding hearing on the plans on Monday, Sept. 22.

The site was considered as recently as last June as a possible location for more than 70 apartments that would have been affordable for working middleclass families earning an average of $45,000. About an additional 30 townhouses would have been for families making between $68,000 to $89,000. The homes would have been built along with 26,000 square feet of one or more retail stores.

That kind of housing, however, is not a permitted use in the performance zone and requires a waiver from the Planning Board, Sawyer said. “That is something they would have had to overcome.”

Sawyer said he had been told by the developer’s representatives that they had shelved that proposal and instead opted for the hotel and convention center.

The news came as a surprise to Robert Tourigny, executive director of NeighborWorks Greater Manchester. The nonprofit community development corporation had been planning to build the homes, selling the townhouses and renting the apartments. Tourigny was not aware of the change in plans, and said there is still a need for affordable housing in the Bedford area.