Property and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]

Property and Equipment

2. Property and Equipment

Property and equipment at December 31 is recorded at cost and summarized as follows (amounts in thousands):

	2017			2016
Land and land improvements	$	267,051		$	266,053
Buildings		2,440,471			2,398,117
Furniture, fixtures and equipment		647,988			604,876
Construction in progress		138,702			50,273
		3,494,212			3,319,319
Accumulated depreciation		(1,428,555	)		(1,321,307	)
Property and equipment, net	$	2,065,657		$	1,998,012

Depreciation expense, including amortization of assets under capital lease obligations, during 2017, 2016 and 2015 was $110.4 million, $108.1 million, and $112.2 million, respectively.

In June 2017, the Company entered into an agreement with the Industrial Development Board of the Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County (the “Board”) to implement a tax abatement plan related to Gaylord Opryland. The tax abatement plan provides for the capping of real property taxes for a period of eight years by legally transferring title to the Gaylord Opryland real property to the Board. The Board financed the acquisition of the Gaylord Opryland real property by issuing a $650 million industrial revenue bond to the Company. The Board then leased this property back to the Company. The Company is obligated to make lease payments equal to the debt service on the industrial revenue bond. No cash was exchanged and no cash will be exchanged in connection with the Company’s lease payments under the lease. The tax abatement period extends through the term of the lease, which coincides with the nine-year maturity of the bond. At any time, the Company has the option to repurchase the real property at a de minimis amount.

Due to the form of these transactions, the Company has not recorded the bond or the lease obligation associated with the sale lease-back transaction, and the cost of the Gaylord Opryland real property remains recorded on the balance sheet and is being depreciated over its estimated useful life.