Gulfport beachfront is heating up as construction begins on $30M Markham renovation

Construction along the Gulfport beachfront near downtown is popping off.

Concrete structures are already going up on the site of the $93 million Mississippi Aquarium. The bricks have been laid for the outside walls of Patio 44 just a block away. The restaurant is slated to open around Halloween.

And in between these two anchors of the downtown beachfront, construction has begun on a 124-room Hyatt Place at the Markham, the City of Gulfport announced Friday. The luxury hotel will bring the historic Markham Building back to life after it was heavily damaged since Hurricane Katrina..

The Markham has been boarded up and empty since 2005.

The hotel will open at the same time as the aquarium in late 2019, said David Parker, economic development director for the City of Gulfport.

Downtown business owners are anxious to see progress on development of the Markham, the Sun Herald reported in February 2017.

Virginia attorney Robert Lubin, who owns the building, signed a franchise agreement with Hyatt Place. Lubin was previously involved in development of a Hyatt Place in a landmark federal building in downtown St. Paul, Minnesota.

This story was originally published September 15, 2018 at 7:00 AM.