MAZATLAN, Mexico --
A half-dozen new developments, including three megaresorts, are on
tap for sites in and around Mazatlan, according to a tourism
official here.
Antonio Ibarra,
secretary of tourism for the state of Sinaloa, described the
projects as "our biggest buildup [in tourism capacity] in 30
years."
The projects
include Diamond Beach, a $1.2 billion development being built along
two miles of beaches in the Nuevo Mazatlan area north of the
city.
On the drawing
board south of Mazatlan is Costa Palma, a project "the size of a
whole city" being negotiated with investors from New Zealand,
Ibarra said.
Also south of
Mazatlan, farther down the coast near Las Cabras, will be a
6,200-acre resort. The project will be the first development in the
state of Sinaloa to be backed by Fonatur, the government bureau
responsible for tourism promotion.
Ibarra said these
and other projects were expected to spark a doubling of hotel
inventory in the Mazatlan area over the next five years. Mazatlan
currently has 9,000 rooms.
Construction at
Diamond Beach is planned to begin this fall, according to project
manager Don Jerry Dusanenko.
"We have the
permits, the [infrastructure] is in place and we're all ready to
go," he said.
The project,
spearheaded by the Nanuet, N.Y.-based Bibeau Construction Co., will
be built in two phases, the first of which is expected to include a
five-star hotel "with a world-class brand," said
Dusanenko.
When completed,
Diamond Beach could spread out over 2,500 acres with lots for about
900 condos and 800 homes, some with prices as high as $4
million.
Other resort
highlights will be one or two additional luxury hotels, a
commercial center, a 27-hole golf course, two polo fields, a
fitness center, a turtle sanctuary and an equestrian area. There
also will be a "resort clinic" to be staffed by doctors from the
U.S. who specialize in cosmetic, replacement and reconstructive
surgery.
A new, 20-mile road
is planned to improve access to the site. It would run north from
the Mazatlan airport, bypassing the city's congested traffic
arteries, then link with an existing highway to the turnoff to
Diamond Beach seven miles up the coast. Driving time from the
airport to the resort is expected to be about a
half-hour.
In addition to the
projects outside town, Ibarra said construction was scheduled to
start in 2008 on a 1,200-room Riu resort in Mazatlan's El Cerritos
area.
Ibarra added that
talks were in progress for a Quinta Real development expected to
offer 80 to 100 units in a complex of several buildings in the
city's downtown historic district.
Another new hotel
in the district will offer 34 rooms in a restored building across
the lane from the Angela Peralta Theater. The hotel, not yet named,
is scheduled to open in December.
Work on a $50
million convention center in Mazatlan's new marina development is
scheduled to begin in January. When completed in 2010, the center
will be able to seat 6,000 people.
Also in the marina
area, construction is continuing on the previously announced
199-room Crowne Plaza Mazatlan, which is scheduled to open in
2008.
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