On December 12, 2022, the Mary Esther City Council unanimously approved a new 124-room hotel located on the south side of the Santa Rosa Mall on Hollywood Boulevard.
- The Extended Stay America hotel will be built behind the existing Surge Trampoline Park, just west of the Hampton Inn & Suites hotel.
On November 7, 2022, the Local Planning Agency held a public hearing, reviewed the request and recommended approval of a preliminary development order. The property is 2.16 acres and will have 124 parking spaces along with 5 ADA spaces.
Now that the development order has been granted, the owners will still have to pull the permits and meet additional contingencies set by the council this week.
- An agreement shall be reached between the City and developer for upgrading the lift station to serve the project. This hotel will use the same lift station as the existing and potential future apartments. That lift station would need to have some upgrades in order to increase capacity for storm events.
- Ensure there is adequate water and sewer capacity for the project.
As of this writing, there is no official timeline on when the project will begin construction.
9 Responses
How about doing something for locals ? We have no Shopping places left in the area. There’s no reason that Mall can not be revamped! I’ve been there the last two weekends and there are plenty of people there trying to find somewhere to shop. It’s ALL about the Money and Greed of the owners !!
Just what we need…another hotel . I agree with previous comment, pure greed and no consideration of the people who live and work here. I can count on one hand the amount of stores we have to shop here with none 4 of the 5 being “discount” stores. Now zero department stores. Have to drive to Destin and in the summer that is a nightmare. Do better Ft. Walton!!!
Seems like they are trying to turn Ft. Walton Beach into another DESTINation.
Agree, we need more and better stores. I heard from employees the rent was to high to stay. Dillards closing, Victorias Secret closed, pathetic. And we have way too many grocery stores. Pitiful. Everyone will spend money in Destin or Pensacola.
I agree that we need more shopping instead. Can’t believe Dillards is closing. I also heard from lots of vendors that the rent was too high at the mall which is why they left. We need a better mall manager!
Where are the city planners in all this? They clearly are not serving the needs of locals. If I wanted to shop only in Destin or Pensacola, I would have moved there! I remember when the Santa Rosa Mall was a great “family “ place to shop. So sad to see our town changing like this.
I have been here since 1982 and FWB has really gone down. It is very sad that the citizens who live here don’t have places to enjoy themselves and shop. We have military and families but it seems that tourists are more important. No don’t be surprised about even a bigger increase of crime. The fishing and beach life is not for everyone. We need movies, a Mall, parks, stores where we don’t have to go to Destin or elsewhere. Why is there no pride for our town anymore??
The hotels being built are unlikely local investors or anyone that lives here. They don’t care about locals. Start attending planning meetings. Get involved in what’s happening in your city. Clean house.
You do not need a hotel