LOOK: City of Tyler Authorizes the Stunning New Rose Complex Convention Center

Although we first started hearing rumors that one of our East Texas cities would soon be watching the construction of a gorgeous new convention center back in July of 2017, due to various factors, not to mention the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020, things were understandably delayed. And the majority of East Texans weren't even aware of the plans until fall of 2019.

But now, as of April 28 of this year, the Tyler City Council as officially authorized the "go-ahead" on this exciting project. WRL based in Flint won the bid for construction.

According to City of Tyler projections, the projected cost for this endeavor was initially around $21 million. However, updated projections reflect a $28 million dollar investment.

How will it be funded?

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The City of Tyler says it is to be paid for via the half-cent sales tax, as well as taxes from hotel occupancy, other funds, and even donations. Oh, and don't ya know those hotel occupancy taxes took a bit of a hit last year during the pandemic?

It will be built on the same land as the Harvey Hall Convention Center. Sure, those of us who have lived in East Texas for many years and have many memories there will be sentimental about seeing these changes, I think once you watch the video of the design plans provided by Fitzpatrick Architects, you'll be as excited as I am.

If you'd like to take a look at the master plan overview and a planned construction date timeline, you can check it out at the City of Tyler website here.

Let's take a quick peek at the plan and the progress so far: