Hard Rock International announced it will not move forward with a 38-story hotel and casino it had planned to build in Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic. Since the project was announced in January 2016, many neighborhood boards opposed it, despite support from President Danilo Medino who attended the groundbreaking, and from the National Hotels and Tourism Association. The casino-hotel would have been Hard Rock’s second in the Dominican Republic.
Since the project was announced, local residents from the Piantini neighborhood united in opposition. In February 2016 a committee of residents, school officials and others asked the Ministry of Finance to deny the casino an operating license. The following month 3,000 families signed an open letter to the Ministry opposing the casino and in July neighborhood councils reaffirmed their objections to the project due to the negative impact the casino would have on a primarily residential zone.
Local residents filed an injunction against the urban planning department of the National District City Council contending permits granted during the past administration violated zoning and environmental laws and regulations, including a provision limiting construction to 23 stories. Also, Miriam Paulino, attorney for the residents in the Piantini-Naco area, said the project did not comply with traffic requirements and did not provide adequate parking.
Last month, Hard Rock’s request for protective measures filed against provisional construction permits was rejected by the President of the Supreme Administrative Court of the Dominican Republic. National District Mayor David Collado said, “City Hall stands firm and will abide by the court’s decision.”
The development, scheduled to open by the end of the year, was to include a 38-story, 400-room hotel tower with a 23,000 square foot casino offering 400 slot machines and 40 table games, plus other amenities. The project would have created more than 800 jobs, developers said.
Last December, January and February, the Ministry of Finance raided unauthorized gambling operations at the Hard Rock, owned by the Seminole Tribe of Florida. More than 8,000 gaming machines were scrapped.
Roberto Chapur, president of RCD Hotels, a partner in the Hard Rock project and owner and operator of luxury resort properties in Mexico and the Caribbean, stated, “It brings us great sadness and disappointment to announce that we will no longer be moving forward with the launch of this property. Unfortunately, due to a small group of four individuals who made it their mission to block the permitting process of this multi-million dollar project, we have decided to take our investment to a destination with a city that is more welcoming towards this type of tourism development.”
