After nine years of planning, regulatory approval and demolition of a former hotel that had seen better days, developer Driftwood Capital has started construction of what will be Brevard County's most upscale hotel ― the 502-room Westin Cocoa Beach Resort and Spa .
The $420 million hotel, spa and conference center is being built on the former site of the two-story International Palms Resort at 1300 N. Atlantic Ave. (State Road A1A). The six-story Westin hotel is scheduled to open in early 2027 and will have more than 500 employees.
"This is a monumental event," Carlos Rodriguez Sr., chairman and CEO of Driftwood Capital, told the 200 people attending the ceremonial groundbreaking for the new hotel on Tuesday.
Fourth Brevard hotel for Driftwood
$30 million for marketing: Brevard County Commission OKs $30M marketing grant to Cocoa Beach Westin hotel project
It will be Coral Gables-based Driftwood's fourth hotel in Brevard County, joining these three properties:
- Crowne Plaza Melbourne , 290 guest rooms, 2605 N. State Road A1A, Melbourne.
- Element by Westin Melbourne , 130 guest rooms, 2655 N. State Road A1A, Melbourne, which opened earlier this year.
- Hilton Cocoa Beach , 295 guest rooms, 1550 N. Atlantic Ave., Cocoa Beach.
Combined, the four hotels will have 1,217 rooms, about 1,000 employees, 166,000 square feet of meeting space and 21 food and beverage venues on 36 beachfront acres — and will represent 62% of the Space Coast's beachfront hotel inventory.
Attractive market for expansion
Rodriguez said Driftwood also is looking into additional hotel and residential developments throughout Brevard County, noting the area's attractiveness as a growing market.
“When we first entered this market over 10 years ago, we recognized the untapped potential for this region to become a hub that melds business, innovation and leisure tourism," Rodriguez said. "Today, as we continue to invest as a partner for growth in the Space Coast, the area continues to draw travelers and new residents, as it emerges into a significant coastal destination with numerous demand drivers across a variety of sectors.”
Rodriguez noted that, among the attractive components of the Space Coast for his company are the space industry; aerospace and defense companies; the military sector; Port Canaveral, the world's second-busiest cruise port; having the closest beaches to Orlando; the iconic surfing breaks in the Cocoa Beach area; and a planned Brightline train station in Cocoa.
What Westin will offer
The Westin will have 11 food and beverage venues, including themed restaurants; a spa; a surfing wave pool; other swimming pools; tennis and pickleball courts; a fitness center; multiple retail locations; and a multistory parking garage to accommodate about 800 vehicles.
The complex will have 72,000 square feet of outdoor meeting and event space, plus 51,500 square feet of indoor meeting and event space.
"Our goal is to be one of the top beach resorts in the United States," Rodriguez said. "This will put the Space Coast on the map for high-end travel. It's the beginning of a new era for Cocoa Beach."
"It is a transformative project," said former Cocoa Beach Mayor Ben Malik, one of the speakers at the groundbreaking event.
"This is a really exciting day," said Cocoa Beach Mayor Keith Capizzi, another speaker. "This is monumental for Cocoa Beach."
Capizzi noted that the former International Palms was in disrepair and was the subject of a number of Cocoa Beach Police Department calls in its final years.
With the opening of the new Westin — which will have 69 suites among its 502 rooms — it might put a halt to the proliferation of vacation rentals in residential areas of Cocoa Beach, Capizzi said.
Shawn Cummins, area vice president at Marriott International, the parent company of the Westin brand, said the Cocoa Beach Westin will fill the 160-mile-long gap of Marriott beachfront resorts along the Atlantic Coast from Daytona Beach to Hutchinson Island.
"We're excited to fill that void," Rodriguez said.
What it took to get here
Cummins said Driftwood's work to get the project to this point is an example of patience and persistence.
Rodriguez said its also required determination, grit, perseverance — and a little stubbornness.
The process included a voter referendum in Cocoa Beach to ease height restrictions, which allows construction of the six-story hotel.
In addition, Driftwood received Brevard County Commission approval for marketing grants totaling up to $1 million a year for 30 years, paid through revenue the hotel will generate from the county's 5% tourist development tax on hotel rooms, vacation rentals and other short-term rentals.
Another local hotel company filed a lawsuit challenging that grant, and the case in pending in Circuit Court. Rodriguez said he is not concerned about the case, contending Driftwood and the county are on solid legal ground.
Rodriguez said he expects the hotel to generate about $3 million in tourist tax in its first year of operation and $4.5 million a year by its fifth year of operation.
Rodriguez's son, Driftwood Capital President and Chief Operating Officer Carlos Rodriguez Jr., said, for guests, staying at the Westin Cocoa Beach will be "far more than a resort. It will be an experience" that will be "as vast as the cosmos and as deep as the ocean."
Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Berman at dberman@floridatoday.com , on X at @bydaveberman and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Construction underway on 'transformative' Westin hotel project in Cocoa Beach
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