A year ago, the idea of a mega-resort in southeast Mesa looked deader than Lazarus.The company that had aimed to build it was no longer developing resorts, the travel economy was still in the pits and four years’ worth of dust had settled on the ambitious plan.
Now, there are stirrings of a resurrection.
The 1,250-room resort, with a conference center of at least 200,000 square feet, was to have been built by Gaylord Entertainment Co. of Nashville on the north end of the former General Motors Desert Proving Ground.
Five square miles of the GM site are being redeveloped by DMB Associates of Scottsdale, which bought the land in 2006 and immediately began laying plans for a mixed-use, master-planned community.
The grand kickoff for the upscale development was supposed to have been the Gaylord. Plans for the hotel, a second high-end resort and other amenities were announced during a glitzy news conference in early September 2008 at the Mesa Arts Center. The overall price tag was pegged at $1 billion or more.
Read more: Plans for a big Gaylord resort in Mesa may be revived
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