April 02–The Knights Key RV Resort & Marina in Marathon is once again in line for major redevelopment.
Orlando-area hotelier Shamir Patel’s Capital Hospitality Management is under contract to purchase the 24.3-acre parcel on the oceanside of U.S. 1 at mile marker 47 from Texas-based Beal Bank.
In 2006, Earthmark Companies acquired the RV park and planned a high-end 199-unit resort, but that fell through with the real estate bust.
According to city Planning Director George Garrett, Patel plans a large resort but hasn’t submitted to the city.
“It’ll be a hotel with a number of independent units. They’ve got 199 units; my understanding is they want 300,” he said. “I’ve talked to at least two or three different entities within the bank and they all confirm it’s a serious commitment.”
Garrett said he’s heard the new resort would have a 200-room hotel and 100 individually owned units, but Patel didn’t give specifics.
Patel said he could offer little in the way of details or plans for the longtime RV park and campground until his firm closes on the property, which he expects to happen in early May.
“I have the property under purchase/sale agreement, so I don’t 100 percent own it. It’s still going through all the due diligence,” he said. “A bank owns it right now, so they basically asked me to keep quiet. A management company is also operating the RV Park at the moment.”
Patel said his company owns five hotels in the Orlando area. According to the Orlando Business Journal, among them are a 251-room Days Inn & Suites, a 224-room Metropolitan Express, a 167-room Howard Johnson and a 128-room Travelodge International Drive.
According to the Monroe County Property Appraiser’s Office, the Knights Key RV Resort & Marina had an assessed value in 2013 of $6.53 million, although assessments traditionally are lower than the market value.
