•Astrodome will live on as a convention center hotel. Houston county commissioners unanimously gave the go-ahead late last month to a private firm’s $450 million plan to convert the mostly dormant, county-owned Astrodome into a convention center hotel. The hotel is planned as a four-star facility with at least 1,000 rooms, a 2,100-space garage, restaurants, nightclubs, and retail stores.
•First man-made island nears completion off the coast of Dubai. With 14,000 laborers toiling day and night, the first of three massive, palm-shaped artificial islands is nearing completion off the shores of Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The island of Palm Jumeirah (pictured), which extends four miles, will accommodate 60,000 residents in 2,500 beachside villas, 2,500 apartments in 20 towers, and 50 luxury hotels.
•Calatrava’s Chicago tower on track. The Irish developer who has purchased the Chicago land where a 2,000-foot twisting residential spire designed by Santiago Calatrava was previously planned says he intends to move forward with the project. The lawyer for Garrett Kelleher, executive chairman of Shelbourne Development Ltd., says that Kelleher and Calatrava have made plans to meet this month to discuss the next steps for the $1.2 billion project.
For more: www.BDCnetwork.com.
