Spanish theme unveiled in Gaylord resort

February 5, 2009

East Valley Tribune

Sonu Munshi

The design of the proposed Gaylord resort and convention center in southeast Mesa is inspired by Spanish and Mediterranean architecture.

Unveiled this week, the design’s basic inspiration was Andalusian architecture from Spain, according to Geoff Woodward, Gaylord’s vice president of development.

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Set on 100 acres at the Mesa Proving Grounds near Elliot and Ellsworth roads, the 1,500-room hotel would be architecturally different from Gaylord’s other properties in Nashville, Maryland, Texas and Florida to be more creative with the climate and topography of the Southwest.

“Given the context that we’re in the desert Southwest and things can be done creatively with the backdrop of the Superstition Mountains,” Woodward said.

The concept comes from the architectural firm TVS & Associates of Atlanta.

Gaylord has not yet come up with a name for the property.

The main building is planned to be 12 stories. Another planned resort would be adjacent to Gaylord’s on about 25 acres. A golf course nearby would be spread across 210 acres.

Gaylord’s other hotels are known for their imposing atriums or dome roofs and a lot of detail goes into the hotel’s interiors, to attract and tend to the needs of the large number of people congregating inside. For Arizona, given the climate, the plans are to maximize gardens and outdoor spaces much more, with resort pools and spas, Woodward said. Plans are to incorporate the use of shade and sunlight in the hotel design.

The Gaylord National near Washington D.C. is all glass and steel, Opryland has a 44-foot indoor waterfall and a climate-controlled glass atrium, Florida’s has a signature glass dome and the property in Texas has a giant atrium.

The same architectural firm also designed the expansions in Texas, Nashville and Florida.

Gaylord officials have said their main business model of rotating conventions from one property to another would be enhanced by a presence in the Valley.

“We’ll be a great catalyst for the area. We’ll deliver 1 million people to the area annually and we believe further development will come,” Woodward said.

Early ballots begin today for the March 10 election on whether to give a $55 million bed tax incentive, $44 million of which would go to Gaylord, if approved. The rest would go to the second resort. The money would be used to promote the properties and the surrounding area.

If built, this megaresort would be the largest such property in Arizona. The closest comparison is the J.W. Marriott in Desert Ridge, which has about 1,000 rooms. It would also be double the size of Westin Kierland.

Currently, about 50 percent of their convention customers rotate city by city within the Gaylord network, Woodward said.

Meanwhile, General Motors, which is still on the Proving Ground site, is expected to stop operations by March end. GM plans to shift its hot weather testing site to Yuma.

DMB Associates, which owns 3,200 acres of the Proving Ground site, would first prepare the property, including disabling the testing track.

The Gaylord project could infuse 8,000 construction jobs and 4,000 jobs thereafter. A study commissioned by the developer estimates Mesa will collect $5.5 million annually in sales taxes from the project, according to an economic analysis by Elliott D. Pollack & Company.

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"The project will spur economic growth in the area by 5-10 years and will create demand for 3-5 additional hotels and other amenities...In all, this project brings a lot of benefits to Mesa without placing any risk on the General Fund."

Speaker Kirk Adams