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$1.5 billion, Vegas-style hotel coming to family-oriented Orlando
An upscale, $1.5 billion hotel planned for Orlando’s popular tourist corridor will offer meeting space and upscale retail and restaurants. Said developer Chuck Whittall:
“We want to build a Vegas-style property with lots of sex appeal.”
The project is the first one in the area to include retail, entertainment and hospitality components. It marks a new direction in the makeover of International Drive, long a popular tourist destination, according to tourism officials.
Kathie Canning, the center’s general manager, told the Orlando Business Journal:
“We need more of this kind of high-end, large-block hotel space in order to book future business.”
The 2,100-room hotel will have 50,000 square feet of meeting space, 150,000 square feet of retail and restaurants, and a $5 million water feature with special lighting and lasers.
The new project will replace the aging Mercado Mediterranean Village built in 1985.
The 17-acre site on International Drive is within walking distance of the 2.1 million square foot Orange County Convention Center.
Mr. Whittall said the development will be unlike anything so far found in the area. The design could include a 10-story waterfall between two 35-story towers.
The developer, Unicorp, is involved in various mixed-use projects in Orlando.
Report by David Wilkening
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