Central Florida real estate happenings....Hilton building again...

A new 1,400-room Hilton Hotel located on over 26 acres right near the

Orange County Convention Center in Orlando is under construction right now. Hilton Hotels Corp., Apollo Real

Estate Advisors and Rida Development Corp. are behind the project, which will cost

over $350 million to complete.

• Hilton Hotels will manage the property. Local firm HKS Architects is

the designer of the 18-story lodging facility, which will be linked by a sky bridge to the

convention center. "The hotel will be its own city," a Hilton spokesperson said.

• The property will feature over 120,000 square feet of meeting space--including two

ballrooms totaling more than 70,000 square feet and 38 meeting rooms--a 15,000-square-foot

spa and fitness center, two restaurants and other amenities. Welbro Building Corp. is handling

construction of the hotel, which is slated to be completed in the summer of 2009.

"This project has been in the works for quite some time, even before 9/11," she said. "The convention bureau wanted to expand hotels in the area, especially upscale hotels. We think the new Hilton will definitely attract even more conventions to the city." The property will also cater to the business traveler, and other visitors to the Orlando area. "As a destination city, Orlando is still growing because it has so many entertainment attractions," she said.

We are all glad of that........ =-)

(information taken from Commercial Property News)