Pop Quiz: Fort Worth
Downtown Fort Worth is getting its first new hotel in 20 years, and I doubt anyone would challenge the value of its contribution to the city’s skyline.
With an opening set for later this year, the Omni Forth Worth Hotel will have 604 guest rooms with 97 condominiums on top of the hotel. In addition to the hotel lobby, the ground floor will include Bob’s Steak & Chop House, Starbucks Coffee, another restaurant, sports bar, a spa, and a gift shop.
The building also will feature 48,000 square feet of meeting space, and is across the street from the Fort Worth Convention Center.
The 34-story building is going up on what was convention center parking (the city is building a garage to replace the lost spots).
According to Fort Worth Architecture Online, the hotel’s design consists of a masonry base with an “L” shaped masonry and glass hotel tower rising out of it. A taller, boat shaped glass section rises out of the base. On the upper floors of this section of the building will be 97 condominiums. The building will have three levels of underground parking. The architect for the Omni Fort Worth Hotel is HOK. At the current time, the exact height of the hotel is unknown, but it estimated to be around 547 feet in height.
Now here is my question: downtown Fort Worth has been booming for years, yet it saw none of the low- to mid-rise hotel projects now popping up in downtown Oklahoma City. Is there any conclusion to be drawn here about OKC’s chances at drawing an Omni-type project in years to come?
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Comments
Not sure. I do know that Ft. Worth is under pressure to stay somewhat caught up with Dallas. Dallas is shooting up condos/ hotels left and right including the amazing “W” hotel. Oklahoma City isn’t really under pressure from anyone. When (or if) the Sonics call OKC home, that will all change. I’m sure the call for this professional city to have professional level hotels will be beckoned.
I agree, with the announcement today of the NBA coming this season, I would expect to hear more hotels making announcements of their own really quick. I think a lot of hotels are looking at downtown with the recent developments but were a bit shy and waiting to see how this NBA thing unfolded. I would imagine that they will be confident in building some nice hotels here now. I would like to see a few more nice high-rise hotels to compliment the skyline some. We already have several moderately priced ones built or in the works. If the NBA team really wants to be a regional attraction, drawing from Tulsa and the rest of the state, as well as Kansas and Texas panhandle, they need to have space.
I honestly don’t know anymore.