Biloxi Expands with More Attractions on the Way

As the City of Biloxi expands its tourist attractions with amenities such as the baseball stadium and a possible theme park, the need for additional hotel rooms is at an all-time high.

This week, the Biloxi City Council will hear from multiple developers and residents on what their expectations are for the new hotels. Dennis Burke and his family are lifelong Biloxi residents and they’ve seen a lot of changes over the years, one of those changes being the beachfront landscape along Highway 90 as commercial businesses have taken over residential areas, the latest of which is a proposed development, the La Quinta Hotel, at the corner of Hopkins and 90.

The Burkes believe the hotel should meet a certain standard. Burke says, "It can be a three story hotel, however, it can have maybe lapped siding and shutters and a porte cochere, that type of thing, rather than a canned plan they’ve built anywhere off an interstate."

Burke says he and his neighbors on Seal Street are expected to keep up to code by maintaining their houses in a certain way and they tell News 25 they hope the City Council will expect the same from the La Quinta developers. Burke also says, "There were some neighbors that really don’t want it to commercialize and we understand that they’ve lived here a long time, but the realities are such that if we’re gonna’ have growth in Biloxi, if we’re gonna’ be pro-business, we have to find a way to make all this happen."

According to Biloxi Planning and Development Director, Jerry Creel, the developers will be incorporating historic architecture to match the nearby neighborhoods. Creel says, "It’s a very nice design. They are going to incorporate some of our architectural historical features into it."

The Biloxi City Council will also be hearing from another hotel developer Tuesday. A local doctor wants to turn an old hospital into a 139 room hotel. Creel closes, "We think it’s a great location, it’s near the mall, it’s near Edgewater Village, it’s near a number of apartment complexes. It would also pick up a lot of business from east Gulfport as well."

The redevelopment will also include a pool and restaurant. The council will review the proposed project at Tuesday’s meeting.