Palm Beach County Convention Center Hotel Construction to Start Mid-May

Ground breaking on the long-awaited convention center hotel in West Palm Beach, Florida, next to the Palm Beach County Convention Center, is expected by mid-May, more than five months after the ceremonial dirt toss.

The 403-room Hilton hotel is expected to open in late 2015, boosting the profile of the 12-year-old Palm Beach County Convention Center. “Once we start building the Hilton, and people see it coming out of the ground, I think it’s going to lead to more and more business,” convention center General Manager Dave Anderson said.

County commissioners chose Related Cos. as the developer in 2010, and agreed to cover $27 million of the estimated $110 million hotel construction cost. Construction has been delayed several times. The sales teams at Discover Palm Beach and the convention center are eager to start booking groups for 2015 and 2016.

Art shows and events such as the Palm Beach Strategic Forum, which brought international speakers to town, keep the convention center busy. Tourism officials would like to see more groups such as the World Waterpark Association that brought 1,500 people to town last fall as these attendees, which often arrive with spouses and children stay longer, buy meals and tickets and tell friends about their great vacation in Palm Beach County.

But most such groups demand an adjoining hotel where they can book 200 rooms or more for association staffers and guest speakers. Those big groups should continue to provide business for the nearby hotels, as the Hilton won’t be able to accommodate all of the attendees.

“I think moving forward, you will see more true kinds of association groups,” Anderson said.

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