"We are very optimistic that we can finalize the deal within 60 to 90 days or sooner," Ira Mitzner, senior vice president of the RIDA Development Corp.-Apollo Real Estate Advisors joint venture, tells GlobeSt.com. RIDA is based in Houston; Apollo, in New York.

If the deal is done as anticipated, ground-breaking would occur immediately adjacent to the two operating golf courses.

The hotel's hard construction cost will probably be "north of $200,000 per room," or at least $150 million, Mitzner says.

The class A mixed-use ChampionsGate is drawing global tourist interest, largely because of David Leadbetter's golf academy and the two Greg Norman-designed courses--a Scottish-themed International links and an Augusta, GA-designed National green, ChampionsGate vice president of operations Marc Reicher tells GlobeSt.com.

With or without the Omni Hotel, ChampionsGate already is at the forefront of the hottest commercial/residential/industrial development axis in Central Florida. The area is known as Four Corners.

Developed on a former citrus grove, the project sits next to a new interchange at Exit 24 of Interstate 4 west, 20 miles south of Downtown Orlando. The project has been in the planning and development stages for the past five years. The new interchange kicked the project and nearby unrelated ventures by other developers into high development gear.

Already in the ground is $100 million worth of undertakings. Besides the two golf courses, ChampionsGate has a 50,000-sf clubhouse and a 60,000-sf office complex that houses the Florida offices of RIDA and Apollo, and the national headquarters of Meadowbrook Golf Group Inc.

A Publix Supermark anchors a growing retail sector in the palm tree-lined community. "Publix gets a lot of customers from Celebration, the Disney-developed community (of 5,000 residents) several miles to the northeast and people are traveling here from Lakeland, FL and beyond just to have brunch in our clubhouse dining room," Reicher says.

ChampionsGate "may be right in the middle of Central Florida's growth (pattern), but it's been deliberately master-planned as a community with a secluded environment," adds Mitzner. As it stands now, "it's an incredible project but you can imagine the impact with the Omni on board."

Instant Insights /

GlobeSt.com EXCLUSIVE: ChampionsGate Project Nears Deal for 700-Room Omni Hotel

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