New Luxury Boutique Hotel Proposed for Orlando’s Dr. Phillips Center
New Luxury Boutique Hotel Proposed for Orlando’s Dr. Phillips Center
A development team has stepped up with a 155-room luxury boutique hotel for the 34,312-square-foot parcel of land the City of Orlando and the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts have been advertising for the past couple of months.
The hotel would be 8-stories tall and cater to business travelers, as well as locals attending shows at the arts center, sports events or just enjoying the Orlando nightlife, according to city documents. The proposal also states the team is working to secure a partnership with Hilton Curio as the hotel’s flag. That brand has only five other locations, including one in Hollywood, Fla.
The development team is made up of Orlando developer Marc Bortz with Bortz Group/Downtown Orlando Developments; Stuart Newmark, president and COO for Revolutionary Road Hospitality Group/Newmark Hospitality Managment Group; PCL Construction as the general contractor; The Gettys Group as the architect; PKF Consulting as market consultants; and CBRE as the hotel’s debt and structured finance team.
If successful, the hotel would most likely fall right into what the city and the arts center had in mind: A 4-diamond AAA-rated hotel with upscale amenities and something that shares the same level of appearance as the arts center.
Hotel amenities include rain showers, free WiFi, Starbucks coffee bars, a ground floor restaurant, a rooftop bar with an infinity edge pool, and an AVEDA Spa. “The hotel will communicate style. When you first walk in the lobby, it will be as if two artists have transformed the lobby into a living art gallery. Our rooms will be large and comfortable at 380 square feet. ‘Artist in Residency’ suites will be offered for guests that want a unique experience. Guests will be able to stay in suites that will also be utilized as studios,” said a description in the proposal.
For events, the hotel design includes two ballrooms for corporate, municipal and personal events, and the ability to cater up to 1,000 people.
City of Orlando spokewoman Cassandra Lafser said the city’s selection committee is still reviewing the proposal and no timeline has been set for the project. “Ultimately, they will bring a recommendation to [City Council]. If the recommendation is to accept and if council agrees and takes that action, then that would authorize staff to negotiate any necessary agreements – which both the city and developer would need to come to terms on. Then those negotiated agreements would go back to city council for approval,” she said.