New construction downtown means a new hotel and parking changes, Tourism Director Walter Tipton said.

Workers broke ground and started moving dirt on the corner of Canal and Main streets in the past few weeks, starting the process of building a hotel across from the convention center.

The fenced-off area will be transformed over the coming months into a 119-room Country Inn and Suites. It will be paired with the convention center, both of which will be managed and promoted by a private company, New Orleans Hotel Consultants.

“We’re very excited about Country Inn and Suites coming in,” Tipton said of the project, which is set to finish in the spring of 2008.

However, the construction means a temporary shortage of parking around the convention center, as the gravel lot once used for parking will soon see contractors putting up frames.

But in the long term, the construction means more parking, Tipton said.

“In reality, only about 100 cars could get on that lot,” Tipton said. “The hotel footprint provides for about 140 parking spaces. So, it’s going to be a great benefit to us.”

Another 30 parking spots will probably be added, as the city plans to pave a grassy area of convention center grounds on the corner of Franklin and Wall streets.

“Long-term, there is definitely a need for additional parking,” he said. “It needs to be addressed. It’s just that most people don’t like to build parking garages because they don’t pay for themselves and they’re expensive.”

In the meantime, Tipton said, long-term parking without the usual two-hour limits is available on Main and Franklin streets.

“And there is parking along Broadway (Street),” he said. “That’s where I think people are going to overflow.”

Another bonus to packaging the convention center and hotel together is less need for parking, he said. Theoretically, most people attending future conventions will be staying at the hotel. That would mean fewer people driving to the conventions and fewer parking spots needed.

“Building the hotel will, in fact, free up a lot of parking,” he said.

That already happens with the nearby Eola Hotel, he said.

Future parking might be built when Lane Company constructs its riverside development under Roth Hill, which includes a casino, Tipton said.

“I would assume they would incorporate some kind of parking,” Tipton said. People might be able to park there when attending conventions, “depending on how accessible it is,” he said.