The Punta Gorda Waterfront Hotel is set to have demolition start on Monday, July 8.
The first step will be to get everything out, including everything from the furniture to the asbestos.
“Tear it down! It's ugly, it was there for the moment and we enjoyed it, but now it's time for something new, something better,” Punta Gorda native Omar Joachim said.
The hotel has been sitting cracked, covered in graffiti, and has had boarded-up windows for the past two years since Hurricane Ian.
“I think where it's been sitting since Hurricane Ian, it's kind of an eyesore, especially since the park's been all redone. I think it'll be an improvement for the community to get it torn down and hopefully they'll come back with something bigger and better,” resident Bob Branno said.
People who come to Gilchrist Park to enjoy the relaxing views of the water say it's impossible not to notice the rundown hotel next door.
“As I was walking by and I saw the graffiti I'm like, what are they gonna do with this, so it's cool to see that something is gonna happen,” Berthine Louis said.
As demolition of the inside gets underway, the city is now working on when demolition of the outside will begin.