JoeCamel
V.I.P. Member
Following all this I wonder if the powers that be would entertain not making these extensions and allowing Universal to build as they wish now that the parcel is being consolidated. They do have a bit of clout and while the plans are finalized how essential are they to the traffic flow through the area. I can cut through Universal North to get to I-4 if I need to or bypass Kirkman traffic to Turkey Lake why would that not work for the southern plot?I agree that parcel 2 is likely to be a prime value, but I believe its development is far enough in the future that land acquisition should have ample time to be resolved. The Mandarin extension is planned to run across the north border of parcel 2, which creates some division, and the universal parcel to its north has a very low height limit which decreases the odds of something substantial being built there anytime soon. Multiple hotels is a possibility, but I also think an eventual 3-4k room resort on parcel 2 and the one to its south is the most likely and ideal outcome.
I'm of the belief that the parking garages will be on the south/southeast side of the new site, and if they got parcel 2 right away they locate some or all of the parking west of Kirkman, which would really open up possibilities for the large contiguous portion of the site. Acquiring it later in the construction process and just adding an additional hotel on that side of Kirkman is certainly a reasonable option, but as you suggested, they will need to have some plan for transporting a significant number of people across the Kirkman extension and past any new parking garages that are built just east of the extension. I'll be interested to see what they end up doing, but at this point I just want some more information or permits to pick apart and speculate on.