Given the unfortunate state of both the economy and the hospitality industry at the time, it was certainly a boon for Philadelphia when the
Kimpton Hotels group announced last October that it would be transforming Old City's historic Lafayette Building into one of its many adaptively reused boutique hotels. According to Nick Gregory, Kimpton's Director of Operations, the project is still going forward, and the company expects the hotel to be complete by the third quarter of 2012.
"Location is important to us," says Gregory, explaining why Kimpton chose to purchase the Lafayette, which sits directly across the street from the Liberty Bell and
Independence Hall. "And the ability to do another adaptive reuse is always exciting."
Kimpton Hotels, in fact, which also owns the LEED-Gold certified
Hotel Palomar in Rittenhouse Square, has a long history of picking up historic buildings and adaptively reusing them. "We think they add a lot of charm," says Gregory. "And if the building tells a story, even better!" (The Lafayette Building, as Gregory explains, was developed by the ultra-wealthy Stephen Girard, who personally financed the War of 1812.)
When the Lafayette Building finally completes its transformation into the Hotel Monaco Philadelphia, it will be home to 271 guestrooms, roughly 13,000 square feet of meeting space, a 3,200-square foot ballroom, and a restaurant with a still-undecided concept. "We don't want it to be too stuffy or fancy," Gregory says, "because of the leisure component that Independence Park offers. So I think it'll be a casual place, but it'll definitely be a great, chef-run restaurant."
Kimpton Hotels is also planning to earn LEED-certification for the Hotel Monaco.
Source: Nick Gregory, Kimpton Hotels
Writer: Dan Eldridge
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