Disney plans hotel resort in Md.

The Walt Disney Co. plans to build a 500-room hotel resort at the National Harbor development in Prince George's County in Maryland.

The entertainment company bought a 15-acre parcel for its project, which was announced yesterday.

Disney's plans provide another anchor for the 300-acre National Harbor project that seeks to rival Washington as a conference and convention destination.

National Harbor already includes six hotels, more than a dozen restaurants, and a giant conference center run by Gaylord Entertainment, owner of the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.

Disney is not using the 15-acre parcel overlooking the Potomac River for a theme park. Rather, the company plans to use the site for one in a new line of stand-alone resort hotels, the first of which is under construction in Hawaii.

The new resort hotel at the National Harbor will be in a prime geographic location and will provide guests with the same fun and amenities that Disney is known for, the company said.

"As we began identifying possible locations to grow our business, the Washington, D.C., area immediately jumped to the top of the list," said Jay Rasulo, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts.

"National Harbor offers an array of entertaining activities for regional visitors, but it is also a family-friendly base camp, from which visitors from around the world can explore the stirring sights and inspirational stories of our nation's capital," Rasulo said. "We believe National Harbor has the unique opportunity to offer a new level of family-friendly hospitality."

Disney bought the Maryland property from the Peterson Cos. for $11 million.

"Disney is the top family-entertainment company in the world, and its purchase is a great vote of confidence in the future of National Harbor and the Washington area as a top family tourism destination," said Milton V. Peterson, chairman of the Maryland-based development company.

Disney's move to Washington's tourism market comes more than a decade after the company canceled plans to build a theme park near the Manassas Civil War battlefield. The project drew protests from politicians and citizen groups.

National Harbor is a commercial, entertainment and residential project along the Potomac River south of Interstate 495 and just inside Maryland from the Woodrow Wilson Bridge.

The project is anchored by the Gaylord National Hotel & Convention Center, which boasts having an 18-story glass hall, 2,000 hotel rooms and 470,000 square feet of meeting space.

-- From Wire Reports