Resort World Miami: Malaysian Company's Plans for Casino Gambling Scaled Back

Malaysian company, Genting Group, had big ideas for Miami.  Buying up the Miami Herald's 13.9 acre bayfront property, it had hoped to capitalize on the Florida Legislature's approval of destination-style gambling.  Genting rolled out big plans for what it is calling Resort World Miami, originally a 10 million square foot project, incorporating the world's largest casino, 5,200 hotel rooms, more than 50 restaurants and bars and a retail shopping mall.

But when the gambling bills died in Tallahassee six weeks ago, Genting had to rethink its entire strategy.  The company announced yesterday that even with casino gambling gone, it was moving ahead with plans for a much scaled down Resort World Miami.  Miami architectural firm, Arquitectonica, is being tasked with the job of redesigning the mixed use plans. The current Miami Herald site would become the location of a five-star luxury hotel, luxury condominiums, waterfront restaurants, limited retail and an 800-foot promenade along Biscayne Bay.

No renderings of the new project are yet available, but it's said that this more modest proposal is a far cry from the original $3.8 billion project which drew protests from community leaders objecting to its scale in regards to the surrounding Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts neighborhood and the potential traffic problems.