Community leaders were invited to a Topping Out Ceremony at Harborside Event Center, which included a sneak preview of two model hotel rooms, an introduction of the development team's luminaries, and a ride up to the top for selected leaders.
Visitors were able to walk through two adjoining model hotel rooms that were built in the existing event center, and those attending were encouraged to give their opinions on the color scheme and design features. This was followed by an indoor ceremony led by Joe Collier, President of Mainsail Lodging & Development, the developers of the Luminary Hotel, where Bob Megazzini was announced as the new general manager of the hotel. The celebration moved outdoors, where local dignitaries signed the final beam, then were escorted to the twelfth and final floor of construction to experience the view from the top, where a large American flag was unfurled along the northwestern side of the hotel.
Construction on the $91 million hotel will be completed in 2020. The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) approved a $2.6 million tax increment rebate/loan agreement for the roject in December 2017, in which Mainsail plans to pay back the total rebate to the CRA, with interest.
Below are some photos of the project, courtesy of Lane Wilkinson, Photographer.
For more information about Luminary Hotel & Co., visit https://www.luminaryhotel.com/ .
Above, model hotel rooms.
Above, Mainsail's Joe Collier & Fort Myers Mayor Randall P. Henderson, Jr., at the indoor ceremony.
Above, Mainsail's Joe Collier addresses the crowd.
Above, Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency Executive Director Michele Hylton-Terry signs the final beam.
Above, the signed final beam for the Luminary Hotel.
Above, local dignitaries pose on the 12th floor of the Luminary Hotel during the Topping Out Ceremony.