The national economy may be on the ropes, but the boom in commercial development along South River Road shows no signs of letting up.

A developer has proposed an 82-room hotel and an 80,000- square-foot office building on South River Road, saying he is ushering in the “next wave” of commercial development in the Manchester area.

The proposal was presented to the Bedford Planning Board Nov. 3, a month after another developer aired plans for a seven-story hotel and convention center closer to the airport access road site. The two proposed hotels would be the third and fourth ones within a 1-mile corridor of South River Road. The other two are Hampton Inn and Suites and Country Inn and Suites by Carlson.

Greg Kirsch, president of Astoria Properties, the proponent for the project, is confident there will be demand for more hotel and office space.

“The fact that it is so close to the 293/Everett Turnpike interchange to the north and the future airport access road and the Everett Turnpike interchange to the south, I think will lead to a consistent growth in this area as a primary focus of commercial development,” Kirsch said. “We see this as the next wave of 21st century commercial development in the Manchester area.”

Kirsch has spoken with a number of hotel chains and franchises but none has committed.

He said it is too early to line up possible tenants. Kirsch will submit a formal plan to the town in the next four to eight weeks. After two to four months of review with the Planning Board, construction could begin in the spring.

He is hopeful that the economy will be on the rebound when the hotel and office building open. But he indicated the development would go forward even if the economy does not.

Kirsch said his company could market its office building to existing businesses in the area, touting its superior location to Interstate 293, the airport access road and the Everett Turnpike, as well as its ample parking, with five spaces per 1,000 feet of office area.

The proposed site is at 270 South River Road and Sunset Lane. His company, Astoria Properties, is under contract to buy four properties and combine them into one 8.2 acre-lot. The current property owners are Kyung and Nam An, Erica and Michael Therrien, Sandra and Joseph Gauci, and the AST Realty Corporation.

The Ans own Master An’s Tae Kwon Do, which is moving to another location, according to Kirsch. The three single-family homes and martial arts studio spread over the four parcels would be torn down to make way for the hotel and office building.

The four-story hotel would be a rooms-only facility without a restaurant. The office building would have 20,000 square feet on each of four floors. It could be split between two large tenants or accommodate businesses down to 5,000 square feet, according to Kirsch. The venture is backed by an investment of $20 million to $25 million, said Kirsch.

Planning Board members had some praise for the project. “Overall, I think that the concept is very appealing,” said Harold Newberry.

Possible roadblocks Kirsch said there are two possible obstacles to the project. The current plan is to have a right-in entrance and a right-out exit for southbound traffic on South River Road. Northbound traffic making left entrances and left exits would use Sunset Lane. Kirsch said the feasibility of the development could hinge on whether the Planning Board allows the curb cut on South River Road.

“We think it’s really important to have a front door to this project,” he told the board. Without it, he warned, the project might not be able to go forward.

“I actually do think for us that would be a deal-killer particularly for a potential hotel site there,” Kirsch said.

The second issue is the impact fees the town will charge for widening South River Road and installing traffic signals. Kirsch said a rate of $3 per square foot would be acceptable, but an increase to $8 or $10 would be, too. The new formula, he said, could end up costing his project $890,000.

Town Planning Director Rick Sawyer agreed the issue could affect development on South River.

“I don’t see how we could ever attract anyone to Bedford,” Sawyer said. “We clearly need to do more work on that.”

Overall, Kirsch said the feedback from the board had been positive.

“I feel encouraged to come back with complete designs and explore some other entry options,” he said. “It was pretty positive I think.”