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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, April 10, 2024

Contact: 

Indigo Vu, (714) 589-5496 | indigo@vietrise.org 

Daria Ovide, (617) 666-3799 | dovide@unitehere11.org

Nickelodeon Hotel Project in Garden Grove Sent Back

Orange County, CA – The approval for the development of the Nickelodeon Hotel has been sent back to the City of Garden Grove after VietRISE and residents of Garden Grove, who are members of UNITE HERE Local 11, filed a lawsuit against the City and the developers. In February 2024, the developers and City agreed to settle.

The project would have consisted of a 3.72 acre, Nickelodeon-themed hotel resort with 500 rooms, ballroom/meeting space, restaurant space, water park, retail space, as well as other attractions in an area that already experiences traffic congestion. It was approved by the Garden Grove City Council on September 13, 2022 after only 1 prior local neighborhood meeting with 16 residents in attendance. 

Notably, it was approved without an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) being conducted, which is used to inform the City Council and general public of the significant environmental effects of a project. It was also approved despite multiple expert comments highlighting serious concerns about the project’s impact on traffic in Garden Grove, climate change, and air pollution for local residents.

This settlement is a huge win for the community of Garden Grove and Little Saigon in terms of increasing community accountability for developers, strengthening environmental protections, and ensuring fiscal responsibility. The project will need to go back to the City Council for a permit re-approval, with an opportunity for residents to weigh in on the project once again. Additionally, the developers and City will be required to conduct a revised environmental analysis that addresses important environmental concerns, like traffic congestion and air emissions, that would impact residents in Garden Grove.

It is crucial to note that the land that this project would have used once contained housing and is allowed to be used for high-density, mixed-use housing (i.e., can be used for housing and commercial spaces in the same location). We are currently in a housing crisis, and we must ensure that the City of Garden Grove continues to develop housing that meets the needs of its residents rather than building costly projects for tourism.

This lawsuit proves that when grassroots community organizations band together in solidarity, even against corporations and developers with hundreds of millions of dollars in backing, we can win and will protect our communities and residents!

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