Hotel builders flock to Clearwater Beach in Fla.

Hotel development is ramping up along Clearwater Beach in Clearwater, Fla., as developers rush to capitalize on the eased financing environment and steady room demand in the area. New hotels in development include a 171-room Hampton Inn & Suites, a 202-room property to be built on the site of a Wyndham Garden hotel and a 230-room hotel being developed by Ocean Properties. All in all, about 2,000 rooms have been proposed for the beach, with more than 1,000 rooms proposed since the beginning of the year. Read the Tampa Bay Times story here.