Shaped like a guitar, the 450-foot tall, 638-room Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida will open in fall 2019 but it already has been creating buzz—pro and con.
Hollywood Commissioner Peter Hernandez said, “It’s very iconic and very cool. You can’t miss it. Everyone I know says, ‘Wow, you can see it from miles away.’”
With its shimmering reflective glass window panes and 12 powerful beams of light shooting up into the sky after sundown, Gary Bitner, spokesman for property owner Seminole Tribe of Florida, said, “At night, there will be this illusion of a guitar neck that goes to infinity. It will be quite amazing, kind of like the light on the Luxor Hotel in Las Vegas. It’s going to be quite dramatic and unique for South Florida. It’s really going to be something.” He said the lights probably will be visible from as far as Miami Beach and Boca Raton.
Critics complain the structure is too big, too brightly lighted and too ugly. They say it will be out of place, will block out the stars and will cause distracted commuters on the Turnpike and busy U.S. Highway 441 to have accidents.
But Hollywood Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Anne Hotte said she was shocked to hear any complaints about the arising hotel. “This hotel makes a statement, and it’s going to put Hollywood on the map. To me, it’s a beautiful thing. I think it’s original. It’s so wonderful to see this in our backyard. It’s really becoming a landmark,” she said.
