Palm Beach convention hotel subsidy approved
Commissioners in Palm Beach County, Fla., approved a $27 million taxpayer subsidy to build a hotel next to the county convention center in downtown West Palm Beach. The $105 million project includes a 400-room Hilton hotel and an adjacent parking garage. The county has been trying to build a major hotel by the convention center for the last decade, hoping to attract more convention business. West Palm Beach city officials now have to approve the plan and move forward with construction. According to The Palm Beach Post, city officials “have been at odds with county administrators over hundreds of thousands of dollars in property taxes the project might generate for the city.” The Post reports that the city says it is entitled to the tax revenue under the terms of a 2005 settlement with the county and The Related Cos., the developer selected by county commissioners to build the hotel. The settlement also requires the hotel to include condominiums.
