CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cleveland Hostel owner Mark Raymond is shouldering his second hospitality project in the Ohio City neighborhood: A boutique hotel blending old and new construction.

The 25-room project, named the Hulett Hotel in a nod to Northeast Ohio's industrial history, would sit on West 25th Street north of Church Avenue. Raymond aims to renovate a three-story brick building, vacated years ago by Lutheran Metropolitan Ministry, and to build a four-story, modern addition on an adjacent parking lot to the north.

Both creative and risky, the Hulett project would introduce a new type of lodging to a neighborhood seeing a surge of investment. Apartment developers and homebuyers have been flocking to Ohio City, but shorter-term lodging is limited to bed-and-breakfasts, house-sharing and the hostel, a 60-bed, budget-friendly property that opened in 2012.

Mark Raymond opened the Cleveland Hostel at 2090 W. 25th St. in 2012, six-tenths of a mile south of his proposed boutique hotel site.

"Mark demonstrated with the hostel that there is a demand for hospitality," said Ashley Shaw, planning and economic development manager for nonprofit neighborhood group Ohio City, Inc. "Usually it takes somebody local to test the market and prove the market."

Raymond, a 36-year-old Geneva native and Ohio City resident, searched for a hotel site for years.

Determined to buy, not rent, he struck out on a handful of properties before Ohio City, Inc., brought his attention to the West 25th Street building, perhaps most recognizable for its exterior sign, left over from the ministry days: "Rev. Richard E. Sering Center for Right Relationships."

The prior owner was giving up on an apartment idea that had become too costly and unwieldy. So Raymond stepped in. Property records show that an investor group led by Raymond and his father paid $550,000 for the building and parking lot last year. They're planning a $2.8 million investment that will hinge on a mix of traditional financing and community lending, plus plenty of hands-on attention.

Big hotel brands typically won't touch a project that's smaller than 60 rooms. The Hulett will be an independent hotel, with in-house marketing and management. It won't be tied into a national guest-loyalty program or have the name recognition of a major chain, but it also won't be saddled with franchise fees or corporate constraints.

Business travelers typically prefer name-brand properties, said Laurel Keller of Hotel & Leisure Advisors, a Lakewood-based hospitality consulting firm. But the Hulett could carve out a niche catering to visitors seeking a unique experience, just across the Cuyahoga River from downtown but with a smaller neighborhood feel.

"In Ohio City, he can do whatever he wants," said Keller, who conducted a market study for Raymond three years ago, for a different site, but hasn't analyzed the current proposal. "He can tie it in with brewery tours. Weekends will be great. ... Weekdays, October through May, would be rough. He would have to manufacture some demand or long-term furnish some of those units for people who are in town for medical treatment, to visit a relative - people who need to be here rather than want to be here."

The property is surrounded by new development and potential building sites, and the hotel would be located just a short walk from Lutheran Hospital, the West Side Market and a Rapid transit station - plus a cluster of breweries and restaurants.

Kirby Broadnax, left, and Isaac Robb, right, discuss business on the rooftop of the Cleveland Hostel in mid-2016.

Across West 25th, plans for an expansive park spanning the Irishtown Bend hillside gained traction this year, making the location even more appealing with promises of links to walking and cycling trails and better views.

Raymond's hotel would take advantage of those views, with fourth-floor event space and a roof-level patio. Plans also show a first-floor restaurant or commercial space. The average nightly rate might be $140 to $150, varying by day and season.

"At the hostel, we get a lot of guests who really could afford to stay wherever they'd like," Raymond said. "But they want to stay in the neighborhood."

While planning the project, he drew inspiration from Ace Hotels, a chain of eclectic, hip properties that has been willing to venture into up-and-coming urban neighborhoods. But the Hulett - somewhere between a boutique hotel and an inn, size-wise - would be much tinier than most Ace locations.

And it would be homegrown in both branding and operations.

Partially clad in rust-colored, weathering steel, the building will be named after the Hulett automatic ore unloader, a cargo-moving machine dreamed up by Ohio native George Hulett and used at Great Lakes ports until the early 1990s.

The heavy lifting on the management side will come from Raymond, who lived at his hostel for four years and now owns a house walking distance from the hotel site.

He hopes to start construction in the fall and open the Hulett in late summer 2018. A neighborhood block club first saw the proposal Thursday evening.

"I think that Mark's project is a good fit for the neighborhood," said Kerry McCormack, the city councilman who represents the area. "You look around Ohio City, and you're going to see a lot of mom-and-pop shops. Even our food and beverage are locally owned, small businesses. So I think the approach is a good one and will be well-received."