What's in a name? Well, for downtown Birmingham's latest proposed hotel it just might be one letter – W. No not that W.
But it's far from official. Right now the owner of the three-story retail building at the northeast corner of Brown Street and South Old Woodward Avenue is looking into the possibility of revamping the structure into a five floor boutique hotel.
"The hotel idea is the owner's," says Christopher J. Longe, the architect of proposed project. "The speculation is it will be a W Hotel."
Right now Longe is conducting a feasibility study on expanding the building. He estimates the 52,000-square-foot structure could be turned into a hotel with 100 to 120 rooms. Doing so would require a complete change of face for the 25-year-old office building that currently houses office space and retailers on the ground floor, including Jos A Bank, Lynn Rossetto Furniture and Max Brock Realty.
"It's basically a 1980s suburban office building," Longe says. "It has the ribbon glass which is not a very urban building."
He hopes this transformation will help make it more open and urban. He plans to give it a light contemporary feel with lots of windows. This would give some architectural diversity in a downtown dominated by traditional brick and stone late 19th Century and early 20th Century storefronts.
The study is expected to be done within the next 60 days. The proposal is still in its infancy and has a long time before becoming a reality.
Source: Christopher J. Longe, architect for the project
Writer: Jon Zemke
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