Downtown L.A. To Get Convention Center Hotel

"It has taken two decades to land a major convention hotel, but the agreement by Marriott International Inc. with local developers to operate two luxury inns in the same glitzy Las Vegas-style high-rise raises hopes for reestablishing the city center as a top tourist and convention magnet.

...With the recent construction of â€" and future plans for â€" thousands of condominium and apartment units, downtown Los Angeles has been evolving into an increasingly desirable housing market. The new homes have spurred the opening of dozens of restaurants and retail shops to serve the new residents."

One critic writes: "One has to get 90% of the way through about forty inches of breathless prose to find that, '[t]he project has attracted controversy because nearly half the cost will be financed by city subsidies and loans.' This is all standard. L.A.'s downtown has been trembling on the brink of revitalization for half a century and taxpayers have regularly been asked to shell out mega-bucks to redeem the long list of previous mega-project fiascos."

Thanks to Peter Gordon's Blog