Whether they are the former domain of presidents or convicts, a variety of historic buildings are getting new life as one-of-a-kind hotels. At the same time, a number of vintage hotels are being restored to their former glory.
Among them is the Bedford Springs Hotel in Bedford, Pa., which reopens in May after a $100 million restoration and expansion. Once the summer White House of President James Buchanan, the Benchmark Hospitality-managed resort will feature 218 rooms, 20,000 square feet of meeting and function space, a spa, and a renovated Donald Ross-designed golf course.
Boston’s Charles Street Jail at the foot of Beacon Hill reopens this summer, complete with preserved catwalks and vestiges of cells, as the Liberty Hotel. The original 1851 granite jail structure will contain a lobby, restaurant, bar, and 6,000 square feet of meeting space; a new 16-story tower will contain most of the 300 guest rooms.
The $87 million, 272-room Renaissance Providence, Providence, R.I.’s largest restoration project, debuts in May with 10,000 square feet of meeting space. Located across from the Capitol and within walking distance of the Rhode Island Convention Center, it was originally the city’s 1927 landmark Masonic Temple.
Downtown San Diego’s US Grant Hotel reopened in September following a 20-month, $52 million restoration. Part of the Starwood Luxury Collection, the 270-room property, which dates from 1910, features 270 rooms and 33,000 square feet of function space that includes two new rooftop terraces.
A new 2007 member of Historic Hotels of America, and its youngest, is the Hotel Valley Ho in Scottsdale, Ariz. Built in 1956, and once popular with Hollywood celebrities, it reopened in December 2005 with 193 rooms and more than 10,000 square feet of indoor meeting space following an $80 million reconstruction and restoration. With its Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired design, the hotel is considered a prime example of mid-century architecture.
Vacant for 25 years, the Hilton President Kansas City reopened in downtown Kansas City, Mo., early last year. Restored for $45 million, it has 213 rooms, reduced from the 413 it had when it debuted in 1926, and 12,000 square feet of meeting space.
The mineral-spring resort town of French Lick, Ind., haunt of Hollywood stars and Al Capone, has been rejuvenated with a $382 million project that includes the restoration of two historic hotels dating from the turn of the 20th century.
In November, Benchmark Hospitality opened French Lick Resort Casino, which includes an expanded French Lick Springs Hotel, a spa, a 1,200-slot casino, a restored 1917 Donald Ross golf course, and a new 109,000-square-foot conference/event center. The nearby West Baden Springs Hotel reopens in May with a second spa and 684 guest rooms.
The Battle House Hotel, once the top hotel in downtown Mobile, Ala., reopens this summer with the Renaissance flag. Built in 1908 and closed for 30 years, the restoration is part of a high-rise office project that will give the hotel 238 rooms and 40,000 square feet of meeting space, including its original ballroom.
Downtown Baton Rouge, La., got back its old Capitol House and Heidelberg Hotel last August following a $60 million renovation. Opened in 1927 and closed in 1982, it is now the 293-room Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center with 18,000 square feet of meeting space. A tunnel under the hotel, once used by Governor Huey Long to visit his mistress in a hotel across the street, now houses a private dining room and wine cellar.
