Resorts World at The NEC | Genting Casino Development | 43m | U/C

[15AVFC]

Originally Posted by Nacho

Thanks for the images Sefton.Although its content is good for that area , I don't like the design at all .I'm reminded of various Media Markt buildings that you find in Spain .

If it's anything like Genting's Resorts World at Sentosa (in Singapore), then at least it will be finished to high standards. The quality of the materials is incredible there.

[djay]

no idea why but this reminds me of what VTP could have been, except without a 200m tower

[opayek]

a few updates on this...

Galliford Try has signed final financial agreements to build a new casino for gaming giant Genting UK at the NEC in Birmingham.

The £89m Resorts World project, which will be one of the biggest building projects in the Midlands, can now start on site to meet a new opening date of January 2015.

As well as a new giant casino, the project includes a 176-bed four/five-star hotel and spa, conference facilities, a factory outlet centre, a cinema complex and parking for 480 cars.

Chief Executive of Galliford Try, Greg Fitzgerald, said: “This contract represents a significant success for our business in a difficult market for construction.

“We are delighted we have completed a successful negotiation with Genting UK and now look forward to starting on site on what will be one of the most prestigious projects in the Midlands of recent times.”

http://www.constructionenquirer.com/...c-casino-deal/

[sefton66]

Great news I believe it's an 18 month build so mid 2013 should be the latest for construction to start, probably start beforehand though to ensure works complete

[metrogogo]

Portacabins now on site near to security gate/entrance two. Enabling work to start shortly.

[sefton66]

from Insider Media

Galliford Try to build £89m Resorts World

Last updated: 15th Oct 2012 at 08:42am

Birmingham-headquartered Genting UK has awarded the contract to build the £89m Resorts World project at the National Exhibition Centre in the city to housebuilder and construction group Galliford Try.

The leisure and retail development includes a casino, a 176-bedroom four/five-star hotel and spa, conference facilities, a factory outlet centre, a cinema complex, food and beverage retail space and parking for 480 cars.

The scheme is set to start on site this month (October), with completion expected in January 2015.

"This contract represents a significant success for our business in a difficult market for construction," said Galliford Try chief executive Greg Fitzgerald.

"We are delighted we have completed a successful negotiation with Genting UK and now look forward to starting on site on what will be one of the most prestigious projects in the Midlands of recent times."

Genting was granted planning permission for the development by Solihull Council in March.

The gaming company was appointed the preferred bidder on the 770,000 sq ft, seven-floor development in May 2008, following a 12-month tender process.

http://www.insidermedia.com/insider/...rld/index.html

[sefton66]

and from the post

Image of £125m NEC supercasino after construction firm appointed
By Cillian O'Brien Oct 15 2012

The new Genting Resorts World casino planned for the NEC

A computer-generated image of the new £125 million super casino at the NEC has been created after developers appointed a construction company to build the giant leisure complex.

Genting UK confirmed Galliford Try as contractor for Resorts World Birmingham with work starting on site immediately and expected to finish in January 2015.

Some 1,750 full time jobs will be created during the construction phase, Genting said.

The site will also include a 176 bed four/five star hotel, a factory outlet centre, cinema, conference facilities operated by the NEC Group and a range of food and drink outlets.


When open, Resorts World will create over 1,100 full time jobs in Solihull and contribute £25 million in added value per annum to the local economy, Genting said.

Galliford Try chief executive Greg Fitzgerald said: "This contract represents a significant success for our business in a difficult market for construction."

Genting’s first Resorts World complex in Europe is a step forward in the NEC’s strategy to provide a 24/7 offer to visitors to the site and keep delegates on campus.

NEC Group chief executive Paul Thandi said: "The scheme will be a ground-breaking addition to the NEC site and we are delighted that Genting UK has chosen a construction partner of the calibre of Galliford Try to deliver Resorts World."

Read More http://www.birminghampost.net/birmin...#ixzz29OGlNyH0

[morestoreysplease]

Great news!! As someone who has been in the exhibition industry on and off for 25 years I'm delighted to see something built planned to keep visitors spending their money in our city instead of disappearing down to Euston to spend it there. I was recently at ExCeL and bearing in mind that place only opened in the late 90s and until about 2006 had literally nothing on site apart from a DLR station, it has suddenly sprung a load of hotels, bars, restaurants and attractions like the new Emirates Cable Car. The NEC should have been looking into creating something like this in the late 80s - an entertainment city locked into the station and airport. It's all about having vision.

[markmcd1976]

The NEC had it's own way for so long and got complacent. I think losing the Motorshow was the thing that really woke them up and made them realise there was more to hosting exhibitions than opening the doors and letting delegate in.

With the investment here and the NIA they are catching up the likes of Excel and some of the other city centre exhibition venues.

[ReissOmari]

We just need the metro up here now!

[sefton66]

Think we will start to see a lot of hotel proposals, when there's a big event on at the NEC you struggle to get a city centre hotel!

[ReissOmari]

What hotels do we currently have in/around the NEC/Airport? Quite a lot i do know

[brummie_jim]

I believe it's crown plaza, Hilton metropole, holiday inn express, premier inn, ramarda encore, Ibis, novatel, another holiday inn, travel lodge, the Arden hotel and the new casino I think that's it did I miss any

[DBadger]

Etap built onto Ibis.

There are also some guest houses around Bickenhill.

[brummie_jim]

Well apart from those ones of course hahahahahaha

[sefton66]

etap was overtaken by ibis and rebranded, probably all be under ibis now

[woodhousen]

etap have always been owned by the ibis group.. they were just rebranded

[sefton66]

any chance of moving this to construction forum woody?

Originally Posted by woodhousen

Las Vegas comes to Birmingham

By David Thame | Leisure | 03-11-2012 | 07:00 | Print

The roulette wheel is spinning and the countdown has begun. In just 26 months' time, the £125m Resorts World Birmingham casino development will be out of the ground.

Contractor Galliford Try moved onto the site of Genting's casino-led leisure development late last month. Part of the sprawling NEC complex in Solihull, the 592,000 sq ft scheme includes a 176-bedroom upmarket hotel, bars, restaurants, and factory outlet shops. It will open soon after January 2015.

Resorts World is an experiment and is Genting's first to be opened in Europe. Anchored by one of the eight large casinos permitted under reform of the gaming laws in 2006, it will bring US-style casino-led leisure development to the UK for the first time.

Steve Donoughue, a specialist casino development consultant and adviser to the House of Commons select committee inquiry into gambling, says the Genting plan is the closest the UK has yet seen to the offer in Las Vegas.

"Arguably, the idea of a casino at the NEC is based on Vegas, as that's a huge conference town, the idea being that conference visitors will like the chance to gamble," he says.

Donoughue believes the idea is worth a punt: "It will probably work, but there are already a high number of casinos in the West Midlands. The question is whether people visiting the NEC for the caravan show will then go and play the tables."

Realistic demand?

Yet, as Genting rolls the dice, some local analysts warn that slot machines and poker tables alone may not guarantee success. Who will visit the scheme's restaurants and bars, they wonder? And is there demand for more hotel beds at the NEC?

For now, Genting is keeping out of the debate. Confirming the appointment of its contractor it said : "This is all we can say at the present time. We have begun to start on the development proper." But Ben Brown, director at GVA, is among those who wonder whether a scheme conceived ahead of the 2006 allocation of casino licences is viable in today's very different market. He says: "The rationale is clear: hotel trade in the NEC area is reliant on the conference and corporate market, and that hasn't been so strong lately, so attracting some leisure visitors to the area would be good. The scheme is designed to complement what is already at the NEC, but it has been a long time in the pipeline and there's a question about whether it takes account of changes in the economy."

Brown says that demand for hotel beds in Birmingham is weak. He explains: "We have oversupply because so many developers have piled into the sector, partly thanks to the business premises renovation allowance."

BPRA gives an initial allowance of 100% for expenditure on converting or renovating unused business premises within a disadvantaged area.

Brown adds: "Supply has gone up, with the tax break artificially flooding the market. Meanwhile, conference business has gone to London, so occupancy rates in Birmingham hotels are still struggling."

Modest growth

The latest data from Marketing Birmingham cuts both ways. Hotel occupancy was up in April and May 2012, compared with 2011, showing 5% and 1% growth, respectively. There's even been modest growth in the weak summer months, up fractionally to 60.6% in August 2012. But this is growth from a low base. By comparison, Manchester regularly sees occupancy of 66% in August and well above 80% in the peak autumn months.

Operators have their doubts, too. Premier Inn believes that demand for hotel beds around the NEC is sated. The chain has a 250-bedroom hotel there and is about to open at Station Road, Solihull. "With the Solihull hotel - and the opening of the new Travelodge hotel on the A45 - we consider the immediate NEC demand to be sewn up," says John Bates, head of acquisitions for Whitbread Hotels & Restaurants.

He says the firm is happy to develop in the city centre - it recently completed a deal to convert the Exchange Buildings from offices to a hotel - but adds that it is "not pursuing" more capacity at the NEC.

If hotel demand around the NEC is unclear, then it is equally unclear how much demand there is for new restaurants and bars.

Paul Hands, head of licensed and leisure in the Midlands for Colliers International, is an enthusiast for the resort plan. "It will add to an already exciting mix on a gateway site," he says. "But if restaurants and bars are to work there, they need to be different.

"It's possibly not the best idea to build a load of square box units, and there's a need for a few really good quality restaurants, otherwise there is a risk of creating another row of the same sort of opportunities that you can get at dozens of locations within a 40-minute drive. It needs to be better, more exciting, than the alternatives."

Solihull council remains confident that the casino plan will deliver an estimated £25m a year to the local economy, along with 1,100 permanent jobs. Ian Courts, its cabinet member for economic development, says: "The casino will be an integral feature of Resorts World.

"The council expects the development to improve the area's overall quality of life and its attractiveness to investors and, as such, is supportive."

[woodhousen]

it asnt started construction yet has it!

[sefton66]

I thought immediately meant straight away?