DANIA BEACH, Fla. – A shopping surge is coming to Dania Beach as the site of the old wooden rollercoaster called "The Hurricane" will soon be packed with new kinds of thrills.
Drivers used to see the rollercoaster from Interstate 95. But soon they will see an $800 million spectacle being put in its place.
All of the shoveling, heavy lifting and hammering is finally starting to take shape at the site of what will soon be Dania Pointe -- a 1 million-square-foot shopping Mecca.
"I'm very excited because I feel like I have to go to Aventura for everything. So it's nice to have some local options," shopper Orah Lasko said.
Among the big box anchor stores will be Brandsmart. There will also be a Hobby Lobby, an H&M store, a Men's Warehouse and a TJ Maxx.
Ulta Beauty has also signed on, along with discount stores Five Below and Shoe Carnival.
The mixed-use development will also include restaurants, such as Outback Steakhouse, Padrino's Cuban Cuisine, Toojay's Deli, Firehouse Subs, and a Starbucks.
"It'll be so convenient, we'll all enjoy it," shopper Diane Krasnor said.
"It opens up the door. A girl can never shop too much," Courtney Krasnor added.
Dania Pointe is being built on 102 acres of land along Stirling Road, east of I-95, The concept is an open-air design.
"These new malls aren't traditional malls, like in the past," Greg Matus, of Franklin Street Real Estate, said. "They are entertainment complexes. They are places for people to interact, people to eat, people to shop."
The next phase of the project is "lifestyle retail," which calls for two new hotels and hundreds of luxury apartments to be constructed at the site that was once home to the old 100-foot-tall wooden rollercoaster.
That ride is now gone amid the Dania Pointe project that promises a very chic atmosphere.
