A new luxury hotel is coming to Palmetto. Convention center seeks upgrades to keep pace
There’s no doubt that a $15 million upgrade to the Bradenton Area Convention Center would bring in more business, but the concept may be hard for some Manatee County officials to swallow.
Along with early renders, Elliott Falcione, the executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, walked the Board of County Commissioners through a series of improvements and renovations at the 34-year-old facility, including a parking garage, a new 10,000-square-foot multi-purpose room and an expanded lobby.
The main driver behind the renovations is the upcoming Sheraton hotel located next to the center. With a $60 million hotel in the works, Falcione argues that the convention center has to make some dramatic changes.
“We don’t want the customer to go from a 4-star luxury hotel to a convention center,” he said. “We want it to look like one.”
The eight-story hotel is expected to include 252 rooms, 10,000 square feet of meeting space, a VIP rooftop lounge, a full-service restaurant and 32,420 square feet of outdoor special event space.
The City of Palmetto recently closed on a deal with the hotel developer, which is set to break ground in October and open the hotel by April 2021. Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant called the long-sought hotel a game-changer.
“It’s going to be a real game-changer for a lot of different events in the community that have been without a home,” Bryant said. “We are in so much need of a hotel north of the river and who can do better than the Sheraton? We’re excited and looking forward to October.”
Despite that optimism, several county officials were wary of making those costly improvements without a guarantee that it would attract more conferences and improve economic impact.
The project would be funded by tourism tax funds, but Commissioner Misty Servia noted that it’s still a risky endeavor.
“I like what I saw, but I think we need to understand it a little bit deeper,” Servia said after Falcione’s presentation. “I don’t like to risk taxpayer money and I won’t do it, but this is a little different. This is tourism dollars, but show us it’s worth it.”
Added Commissioner Stephen Jonsson: “I still need a lot of convincing. It’s a lot of money and requires a real vision, and I’m just not there yet.”
Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said she was “ecstatic” to hear about the hotel development, but that she shares Jonsson’s worries.
“The need to do it all at once is my concern,” she said.
Others were more receptive of Falcione’s idea. Commissioner Carol Whitmore called it an opportunity for the county to set itself apart from other similar offerings in a major way.
“Our current convention center is tired looking for all of us that go there,” Whitmore said. “We need to think outside the box.”
“I get it. There’s risk involved and perhaps the government shouldn’t take risks,” Commissioner Betsy Benac added. “But you’ve got to step out sometimes to exercise that vision.”
Commissioner Priscilla Whisenant Trace said she was on board with the proposal, citing the need for hotels north of the Manatee River as well as a visual upgrade at the Bradenton Area Convention Center.
“With our tourist dollars, we’re going to make something special in Palmetto and something special in Manatee County,” Trace said.
“I’m sorry, we look dingy,” she added. “I embrace this. I think it’s great.”
Falcione said the discussion was meant as a brief overview and he will come back before the board for official approval in October.
“We were trying to keep this discussion at the 30,000 feet level, but we’re going to keep sharpening our pencils,” he said.
