After several years of wrangling, the last legal challenge to Aurora’s Gaylord Rockies Hotel is over, paving the way for the massive hotel near Denver International Airport.
The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday filed by about a dozen Denver and Colorado Springs hoteliers who claimed Aurora was awarded $81.4 million from the state illegally for the project.
The group sued the Colorado Economic Development Council in September 2012, but lost that case as well as an appeal on grounds they lacked standing to sue the state and couldn’t show how they had been harmed.
A requirement of any money from the Regional Tourism Act, which funds tourism projects, must show a project can’t be built without state support. The group challenged that, saying the project didn’t need the state’s help.
Aurora City Attorney Mike Hyman said the city did not feel the hotel group, which included the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs and the Oxford Hotel in Denver, had the ability to challenge the award by the commission.
“The can’t go any farther here,” Hyman said. “Basically, the supreme court shut them down. I think it’s over.”
Sean Duffy, spokesman for the hoteliers, said he had no comment on the ruling.
Despite outstanding legal issues, ground broke last year on the 1,500-room Gaylord hotel and convention center that will also include a water park. The price tag on the project could reach $850 million. It is expected .
Aurora Economic Development Council CEO Wendy Mitchell said she expects Gaylord Rockies to attract 450,000 new visitors annually and contribute $273 million in new money to the state’s economy each year.
“We knew the supreme court would find in our favor,” Mitchell said. “It’s fantastic. That means it’s over.”
Carlos Illescas: 303-954-1175, cillescas@denverpost.com or @cillescasdp
