The state has given final approval to the $2 million state grant that will help pay for the proposed hotel in downtown Butler.

The grant was originally awarded in 2013 to help fund the proposed 70-room Marriott Springhill Suites hotel.

The Wolf administration on Wednesday announced the execution of that Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program contract, adding it will allow for a groundbreaking as early as next month, according to a news released by the state.

“I’m overjoyed,” said Mayor Tom Donaldson. “I can’t use enough adjectives to describe how happy I am. This is the last step in getting the hotel up.”

Donaldson said he was notified of the approval Wednesday through state Sen. Scott Hutchinson’s office.

Neither the hotel nor garage have a groundbreaking date, although Donaldson said it should be in the next couple months.

The grant is awarded to the city redevelopment authority, which will be a 36 percent owner of the hotel. J.S. Capitol Construction, the developer of the project, will finance the rest of the project through a $2.9 million NexTier Bank loan and private investors.

Art Cordwell, executive director of the authority, said Wednesday he had not been notified of the approval by the state.

“That’s great news if true, but I haven’t heard anything,” he said. “We’re still waiting for a signed contract.”

RACP is a state grant program administered by the Office of the Budget for the acquisition and construction of regional economic, cultural, civic, recreational, and historical improvement projects, according to the news release.

The hotel will be built at the corner of East Jefferson and South McKean streets. It will join a proposed 239 space parking garage to be built by the city and an already completed Rite Aid pharmacy as part of the Centre City project.

The total price of the hotel will not be determined until it is put out to bid. However, city officials expect it to cost more than $4 million based on industry standard estimates.