NEWPORT, Ky. — Wastin' away again in ... Newport?
A Margaritaville resort is planned for Newport on the Levee. The city's board of commissioners authorized a development agreement for the project during their meeting Monday night.
City manager Thomas J. Fromme said a hotel was always planned for the area, and the Margaritaville resort will be "one of the final pieces of the Newport on the Levee puzzle."
"I really think this is gonna be a showpiece for the levee and for the city and for all of us," Fromme said during the meeting.
The hotel is planned for an empty lot near the aquarium and old IMAX theater. Developers noted that the Tri-State is a "very strong Parrot Head region," saying the hotel is "designed to be a destination," not a rest stop for passersby.
There will be 264 rooms and multiple restaurants and bars — including a rooftop "5 O'Clock Somewhere" bar and JWB Grill. A 2,000-square-foot event center will also be located at the hotel, as well as a pool.
Commissioner Julie Smith-Morrow said the hotel will work as the perfect anchor for the complex on the levee.
"It's great for the area, and I'm really excited about it," Smith-Morrow said. "I live two blocks away, so I'll be walking here quite often to enjoy everything that it has to offer."
At this time, the nearest Margaritaville resort is in Tennessee. Commissioner Mike Radwanski said having such a popular brand build something in Newport will attract more visitors from just outside the Tri-State.
"It's Margaritaville, but it's not in New York City. It's not some other tourist destination. It's in Newport, and it'll be something that no one else has in the region that we have in Newport, and I really think it's going to bring a lot of people to our city," Radwanski said.
Developers said the hotel will bring roughly 200 jobs to the city. Construction will begin in about one year with a goal of opening in February 2026.
There is still some financing that still needs to be approved — including a 3% surcharge on all transactions in the hotel to help cover the cost of the project.
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