New Downtown Phoenix Sheraton Hotel Receives Full Funding

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. October 14, 2008

PHOENIX, AZ, December 27, 2005. The new 1,000-room Sheraton hotel slated to open in Downtown Phoenix, just one block from the expanding Phoenix Convention Center, is now fully funded. Reflecting Wall Street's confidence in Phoenix's convention future, the bonds for the project sold at a favorable blended rate of 5.28%. Groundbreaking for the project is set for February, and the 31-story building will open in the Fall of 2008.

Likewise, the expansion bonds for the Phoenix Convention Center sold earlier this year at favorable rates. The all-in true interest cost for the Series A was 4.6249% and the Series B was 4.7301%, also indicative of the positive response the expansion in Phoenix has received from institutional investors.

The Sheraton will be located on the Northwest corner of Third and Van Buren streets one block from the new convention center. The opening of the hotel will coincide with the debut of the completed expansion of the Phoenix Convention Center, which will triple in size to more than 900,000 square feet.

The Sheraton will boast a 29,000-square-foot ballroom, and another about half that size. Also included will be 42 meeting rooms for a total of 80,000 square feet of meeting space.

"This announcement is another exciting move forward in our efforts to create a more vibrant, revitalized Downtown Phoenix," said Mayor Phil Gordon. "By adding to our list of downtown hotels, the new Sheraton is going to enhance our meetings and convention business at the expanded Phoenix Convention Center by significantly increasing downtown hotel occupancy opportunities."

The Sheraton and convention center expansion projects, along with a 225-room W hotel and METRO light rail, will all debut in 2008 -- further positioning Downtown Phoenix as an energized hub for commerce, culture and more.

The new Sheraton Hotel will complement current downtown hotels that include the Hyatt Regency (712 rooms) and the Wyndham Phoenix (532 rooms). More than 2,900 downtown rooms are available to meeting planners for committable blocks.

"The new Phoenix, fully open in late 2008, is night-and-day different than our meetings package of the late 90s," said Steve Moore, CEO of the Greater Phoenix CVB. "This community's commitment to our industry is phenomenal."

Downtown Phoenix provides visitors with a wide array of outlets for cuisine, entertainment and culture. The Herberger Theater Center, Symphony Hall, Orpheum Theatre, Arizona Center, Dodge Theatre, Arizona Science Center, Chase Field (formerly Bank One Ballpark) and US Airways Center (formerly America West Arena) are just a few of the adjacent options available to visitors.

The world-renowned Heard Museum and the Phoenix Art Museum are also within two miles and on the future light rail route.