by Julie Wanzer, LEED AP
Denver, CO – The Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center was highlighted by Marriott International, Inc. in a speech given by Brian King, the company’s Global Officer, Brand Management & Global Sales, at the Global Business Travel Association’s annual convention in Denver on July 17, 2016. The Gaylord Rockies received an honorable mention as a high-profile project as part of Marriott’s current active period for meeting space expansion.
“Marriott International is in the midst of one of its most exciting periods ever for business travel professionals,” King said. “In the coming year, we’ll be unveiling scores of new luxury and lifestyle properties and significant new ballrooms worldwide.”
Located only ten minutes from the Denver International Airport in the City of Aurora, Marriott’s expansion of the Gaylord Hotels brand can serve as a means to attract new business travelers and associations looking to host conventions in the Denver-metro area.
This highly-politicized project, which is a joint venture of Mortenson/WELBRO, officially broke ground in early January 2016. The full scope includes the construction of the 1.1 million square foot Gaylord Rockies hotel, 920,000 square foot convention center, and complete infrastructure development of the 80-acre site with new access roadways. This hospitality project, set to open in late 2018, is noted as the largest hotel project under construction in the United States.
The Gaylord Rockies hotel is also gaining notoriety for its Colorado workforce development. Currently, 100% of the workforce is Colorado-based with more than $250 million in contracts awarded to Colorado-based companies.
According to Mortenson/WELBRO, construction statistics include:
- 4 tower cranes on site – largest can lift 34,000 lbs
- 6,800 tons of structural steel and 76,000 cubic yards of concrete comprise the building structures
- 12,100 squares of metal decks will be used for the floor plates
- 733 of the 1,300 caissons have been drilled for the foundations
Main Photo credit: Photo courtesy of Gaylord Rockies
Body Photo credit: Photo courtesy of Mortenson Construction
