Downtown hotel developers are racing to keep pace with Savannah’s tourism boom.
The Savannah Historic District Board of Review on Wednesday looked at plans for two new River Street hotels and a 40-room expansion to the existing Staybridge Suites on East Bay Street. The three hotels combined would add approximately 250 rooms to the downtown inventory.
Meanwhile, site prep is underway for an already approved 150-room Embassy Suites to be built on West Oglethorpe Avenue across from the bus station.
“Savannah has consistently absorbed the new hotel inventory that has been added over the years,” said Joe Marinelli, president of Visit Savannah, the local convention and visitors bureau. “However, with very little new product coming on line for the last 2-3 years, it’s not surprising that so many new projects are popping up.”
None of the three hotel projects discussed Wednesday were new to the Historic Review Board. Plans for one of the River Street hotels, a large, 165-room hotel located across from the former Savannah Electric power plant, was proposed in January. The other, a boutique hotel in the Ryan building, was approved last year and was brought back before the board because of changes made to room balconies.
As for the Staybridge Suites, the addition was previously approved by the board, albeit in 2006. The economic downturn led to a delay in the project, and the Savannah Historic District ordinance has changed in the years since. The plans must be resubmitted for board approval.
Only the boutique hotel in the Ryan building received a final blessing Wednesday. The 165-room River Street hotel received the first of two approvals, and the hotel’s architect, Pat Shay, said he won’t return for the second approval any earlier than the Historic Review Board’s November meeting.
The architect for the Staybridge Suites expansion, Jose Gonzalez, came before the board for feedback on his plans and ultimately asked for a continuance to a future meeting. The project still needs two approvals — one for the size and mass of the structure, another for the design details of the building — before construction can move forward.
Renovations are underway on the boutique hotel in the Ryan building. The project’s architect, Neil Dawson, said the hotel is on track to open sometime next year.