Bradenton to pour $48 million into convention center expansion
By Ashley Gurbal Kritzer
Tampa Bay Business Journal
Published: Jan 16, 2024

Bradenton will spend $48 million to renovate and expand its convention center, complementing a private developer’s investment in an adjacent full-service Marriott hotel.

The city’s convention and visitors bureau said Tuesday that the renovation — which will add 14,000 square feet of ballroom space to the property — is underway. The ballroom can seat up to 900 attendees or be split into two equal sections with movable walls. It will be complete in the second quarter of 2025.

The expansion will be funded by tourist development tax revenues. Tourist development taxes are levied on hotel and vacation rental guests. The new Marriott is 100% privately funded.

“This project is vital to our ongoing urban core redevelopment efforts, which will provide an estimated economic impact of $25 million to $30 million annually to the community,” Elliott Falcione, executive director of BACVB, said in a statement. “We are also committed to keeping the convention center’s main area open for public events during construction.”

Kolby Gayson, a spokesperson for the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, told the Tampa Bay Business Journal that the group is pursuing “small corporate and association [functions] that are multiday events.”

The expansion comes as construction is wrapping up on the adjacent Marriott Palmetto Resort and Spa, which is slated to open in April. The 252-key hotel will also offer 10,000 square feet of meeting space as well as a ground-floor restaurant, rooftop bar and lounge and outdoor pool.

“The Bradenton area downtown core has untapped potential with its beautiful waterfront combined with its quaint historic charm,” said Tony DeRusso, managing director of Indevelopment Partners LLC, which is behind the new hotel. “With the hotel being in such close proximity to downtown Bradenton and Anna Maria Island, Palmetto is truly the ideal location for this world-class resort, further creating a vibrant and exciting conference and convention destination.”