Dewberry Hotel: Difference between revisions

From Cvillepedia
Jump to navigation Jump to search
(re-arranged, a few updates & added info.)
m (date correction)
Line 6: Line 6:


==The Dewberry Charleston and other projects==
==The Dewberry Charleston and other projects==
Ten years after purchasing an abandoned 1960's concrete-and-steel-structure brick building in Charleston, NC and completing construction, which included extensive asbestos removal, Atlanta-based real estate developer and part-time Charleston resident John K. Dewberry, opened '''The Dewberry Charleston''' hotel in June of 2018. The The former Federal Building, built in 1964 to house various government agencies, closed in 1999 after sustaining damage from Hurricane Floyd.<ref>https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/13322-the-dewberry-charleston-by-studiodewberryreggie-gibson-architects</ref> In 2003, after several years of negotiations, the GSA and City of Charleston developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which that the city would construct a new building for GSA and, in exchange, the City of Charleston would take control of the Rives Building. The GSA building project was to proceed in the summer of 2003. The MOU was set to expire February 10, 2007 if the City of Charleston and the GSA could not reach an agreement.<ref> https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-03-816R</ref> In January 2008, Dewberry submitted the high bid for the vacant office property in an online auction for $15 million.<ref> https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html</ref>  
Twelve years after purchasing an abandoned 1960's concrete-and-steel-structure brick building in Charleston, NC and completing construction, which included extensive asbestos removal, Atlanta-based real estate developer and part-time Charleston resident John K. Dewberry, opened '''The Dewberry Charleston''' hotel in June of 2016.<ref>https://nypost.com/2017/06/26/dewberry-more-charleston-scs-new-hotel-superstar/</ref> The The former Federal Building, built in 1964 to house various government agencies, closed in 1999 after sustaining damage from Hurricane Floyd.<ref>https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/13322-the-dewberry-charleston-by-studiodewberryreggie-gibson-architects</ref> In 2003, after several years of negotiations, the GSA and City of Charleston developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which that the city would construct a new building for GSA and, in exchange, the City of Charleston would take control of the Rives Building. The GSA building project was to proceed in the summer of 2003. The MOU was set to expire February 10, 2007 if the City of Charleston and the GSA could not reach an agreement.<ref> https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-03-816R</ref> In January 2008, Dewberry submitted the high bid for the vacant office property in an online auction for $15 million.<ref> https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html</ref>  


Dewberry's firm has developed the Dorchester Square retail center in North Charleston. It later bought Cross Creek Square at Folly Road and Maybank Highway on James Island and rebuilt the Bi-Lo shopping complex at Ben Sawyer Boulevard and Rifle Range Road in Mount Pleasant, North Carolina.<ref> https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html</ref>
Dewberry's firm has developed the Dorchester Square retail center in North Charleston. It later bought Cross Creek Square at Folly Road and Maybank Highway on James Island and rebuilt the Bi-Lo shopping complex at Ben Sawyer Boulevard and Rifle Range Road in Mount Pleasant, North Carolina.<ref> https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html</ref>

Revision as of 20:51, 28 December 2018

Skeleton of the Landmark Hotel

Originally planned as a nine-story, 100-room luxury hotel, The Landmark Hotel, as it is currently called, is now a vacant, partially constructed building on the Downtown Mall. Construction was abandoned in January 2009. The newest owner, Dewberry Capital of Atlanta, submitted design plans to resume construction and expanding the number of rooms to 112.[1] Located at 201 East Water Street, the reinforced concrete structure remains incomplete - lacking windows, elevators, balcony railings and most basic services.

As of 28 March 2024 no plans have been filed with the city of Charlottesville to continue construction work on the building or site.

Dewberry Capital of Atlanta, a John K. Dewberry firm, won the building shell at auction in June 2012 with plans to complete the structure.[2] Planning was expected to continue on the site after a Dewberry hotel was opened in Charleston, South Carolina in the summer of 2016. [3][4]

The Dewberry Charleston and other projects

Twelve years after purchasing an abandoned 1960's concrete-and-steel-structure brick building in Charleston, NC and completing construction, which included extensive asbestos removal, Atlanta-based real estate developer and part-time Charleston resident John K. Dewberry, opened The Dewberry Charleston hotel in June of 2016.[5] The The former Federal Building, built in 1964 to house various government agencies, closed in 1999 after sustaining damage from Hurricane Floyd.[6] In 2003, after several years of negotiations, the GSA and City of Charleston developed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in which that the city would construct a new building for GSA and, in exchange, the City of Charleston would take control of the Rives Building. The GSA building project was to proceed in the summer of 2003. The MOU was set to expire February 10, 2007 if the City of Charleston and the GSA could not reach an agreement.[7] In January 2008, Dewberry submitted the high bid for the vacant office property in an online auction for $15 million.[8]

Dewberry's firm has developed the Dorchester Square retail center in North Charleston. It later bought Cross Creek Square at Folly Road and Maybank Highway on James Island and rebuilt the Bi-Lo shopping complex at Ben Sawyer Boulevard and Rifle Range Road in Mount Pleasant, North Carolina.[9]

City Council Actions

The Charlottesville City Council directed staff in January 2016 to pursue legal action to either force construction or to force public acquisition through eminent domain. [10] [11]

In July of 2016, the Charleston’s Dewberry hotel opened.[12] The eight-story, 155-room property opened in a former federal office building in downtown Charleston, NC.[13]

Dewberry is still seeking to develop the building and is continuing to work with city officials on the design, which includes activating Second Street. [14] The project is dormant as of October 30, 2018. [15]

History

The Landmark was the creation of entrepreneur Lee Danielson. [16] The idea was to build a $30 million, nine-story luxury boutique hotel.

Before Minor

The construction site is a former bank building that was owned by Wachovia after it purchased Central Fidelity. [citation needed] Prior owners of the project included Lee Danielson and Oliver Kuttner, and other names used for the project in the past had been The Beacon-Charlottesville and Hotel Charlottesville. [17]

Approvals

The Charlottesville Board of Architectural Review approved construction plans on February 20, 2008[17]. BAR granted conditional permission to tear down the black granite façade in October 2008[18]. Because of a quirk in Virginia law these original 2008 approvals remain in effect, and stay valid until 2017.[19]

Initial troubles surface soon after groundbreaking

Groundbreaking for the Landmark on March 11, 2008 and the opening was scheduled for July 2009. [20][16]

However, the project's financing was called into question as early as November 2008. That's when project lender Silverton Bank failed. [21]

Minor fired developer Lee Danielson in December 2008. [22] Construction stopped in January of 2009. The pair went to court.

The welter of lawsuits that followed the collapse of the project included a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") suit against Silverton Bank (which the FDIC was forced to take over and later dissolve), and another FDIC lawsuit against Minor for having defaulted on a $10.5 million Silverton loan.[23]

Court battle

Donald H. Kent of Richmond-based arbitration firm The McCammon Group ruled that Danielson misrepresented the construction costs–- including hiding the fact that the restaurant wasn't included in the budget.[24] The arbitrator awarded $4.2 million in damages, and attorney's fees of $2.24 million.

On September 1, 2010, Minor filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [25] The filing stayed all pending lawsuits which by then included the suit between Danielson and Minor, the FDIC lawsuit against Minor, and lawsuits against Minor filed by Merrill Lynch, Sotheby's, and Christies.[26]

The Charlottesville government refused to provide financial assistance to complete the hotel, unlike the development assistance provided to the Omni Hotel in the 1970s. [27]

Project taken from Minor

In January 2011, a Georgia court awarded the project to Specialty Finance Group following a long legal dispute. [28]

On December 5, 2011, a Charlottesville Circuit Court judge ruled that the first debt that Minor must repay is more than $128,000 in back taxes to the city of Charlottesville. Next, Minor must pay Clancy & Theys Construction, other construction firms and then Specialty Finance Group. [29]

Auction

On June 18, 2012, three companies bid on the property. They were Deerfield Square Associates, J.B. McKimmon and TRT Holdings, Inc. [30] Each submitted an opening bid of at least $3 million and a $200,000 cash deposit.

Danielson submitted a bid but he was rejected because of an inability to guarantee to pay.

Dewberry Capital, associated with Deerfield Square Associates, won the auction with a $6.25 million bid. [2]

Spot blight

After nearly four years of being abandoned, Charlottesville officials served Dewberry in the fall of 2013 with a letter requesting he secure the property against vandalism and grafitti. Dewberry responded by saying he had done enough.[31]

Dewberry has stated he will complete the project after another hotel is completed in Charleston, South Carolina.[32] That project is redevelopment of the former L. Mendel Rivers Federal Building into a 155-room hotel. That is expected to be open between December 2015 and February 2016. [33] However, the project may not open until spring 2016. [34]

On January 14, 2014, the Charlottesville Planning Commission voted 7-0 to require Dewberry to secure the property and to require a structural integrity report to be completed within ninety days.[32][35] In response, Dewberry secured the building with plywood barriers, installed a taller fence and blocked open stairwells-- but no progress on new construction is expected until at least 2016 or even later. [36]

In 2018, it was reported that the site has become a major source of rats on the Downtown Mall [37]

Map

Coordinates:Erioll world.svg.png 38°01′48″N 78°28′51″W / 38.030127°N 78.480761°W / 38.030127; -78.480761

Timeline

  • November 15, 2007: Minor Family Hotels LLC and Hotel Charlottesville LLC enter into a development agreement
  • April 19-23, 2010: Parties hold arbitration meetings at which 8 witnesses testify and thousands of documents are introduced into the record[38]
  • August 25, 2010: Judge Hogshire signs the arbitration award
  • January 19, 2011: Fulton County State Court in Georgia awards assets of project to Specialty Finance Group [28]
  • June 18, 2012: Auction in U.S. District Court won by Dewberry Capital
  • January 14, 2014: Planning Commission votes 7-0 to require building to be secured, structural report
  • January 19, 2016: Council directs staff to prepare for legal action to either force construction or to force public acquisition through eminent domain.[39]
  • June 20, 2017: Dewberry's plans go before the Board of Architectural Review
  • March 20, 2018: BAR grants approval of new massing and height [14]

Images

References

  1. Web. Dewberry plans for Landmark hotel to go before review panel, Sean Tubbs, News Article, Charlottesville Tomorrow, June 3, 2017, retrieved June 9, 2017.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Web. Dewberry Capital Wins Landmark Hotel for $6.25 M, Matt Telhelm, NBC29 News, June 18, 2012, retrieved June 18, 2012.
  3. Web. Atlanta developer snaps up Landmark for $6.25 million, Graelyn Brashear, C-VILLE Weekly, Portico Publications, retrieved February 18, 2016.
  4. Web. Charleston’s Dewberry Hotel rolls out more rooms, Dave Munday, Charleston Post and Courier, September 4, 2016, retrieved September 5, 2016.
  5. https://nypost.com/2017/06/26/dewberry-more-charleston-scs-new-hotel-superstar/
  6. https://www.architecturalrecord.com/articles/13322-the-dewberry-charleston-by-studiodewberryreggie-gibson-architects
  7. https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-03-816R
  8. https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html
  9. https://www.postandcourier.com/business/developer-buys-mendel-rivers/article_04aaf23b-cc06-5c85-b5ad-3ccd7ec6a988.html
  10. Web. cc51a.html Council requests action plan on Landmark from city manager, Chris Suarez, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, January 20, 2016, retrieved February 18, 2016.
  11. Web. City Council Passes Resolution Regarding Landmark Hotel Property, Press Release, City of Charlottesville, retrieved December 27, 2016.
  12. Web. The Dewberry: History
  13. https://www.postandcourier.com/business/charleston-s-dewberry-hotel-claims-m-losses-over-rooftop-rulings/article_c6202bcc-644b-11e8-a221-533cdc70c152.html
  14. 14.0 14.1 Web. Design panel approves additional height for Dewberry Hotel, Sean Tubbs, News Article, Charlottesville Tomorrow, March 23, 2018, retrieved April 4, 2018.
  15. Web. City faces limited options as Dewberry project progress stagnant, Nolan Stout, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, October 13, 2018, retrieved October 30, 2018.
  16. 16.0 16.1 Danielson, Minor break ground on ‘Landmark’ Dave McNair, The Hook, March 11 2008, retrieved 26 Aug 2009.
  17. 17.0 17.1 ONARCHITECTURE- Bright idea: Danielson's Beacon's back in town, Dave McNair, The Hook, March 1, 2007, retrieved 26 Aug 2009.
  18. Landmark Hotel developer given permission to take down black granite facade, Sean Tubbs, Charlottesville Tomorrow, October 22, 2008, retreived 26 Aug. 2009
  19. In response to the 2008-09 recession when construction financing suddenly dried up, developers persuaded the Virginia legislature to extend all existing plat and plan approvals until 2017.
  20. New Details about New Luxury Hotel, Joanna Shrewsbury, NBC 29, March 11 2008, retrieved 26 Aug 2009.
  21. Landmark letdown: Hotel project’s lender folds, Lindsay Barnes, The Hook, May 1 2009, retrieved 26 Aug 2009.
  22. Landmark Hotel developer fired Brian McNeill, Daily Progress, December 6, 2008, retrieved 26 Aug 2009.
  23. Web. FDIC sues bank that financed Landmark Hotel - C-VILLE WeeklyC-VILLE Weekly, Chiara Canzi, August 24, 2011, retrieved October 25, 2015.
  24. Template:Cite-Hook.
  25. {{cite-cville|author=Chianzi, Chiara|title=C-Ville: Development - Landmark Hotel Owner Files for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy|publishdate=10 July 2010|accessdate=October 5, 2016|url=http://www.readthehook.com/67187/danielson-trumped-minor-wins-landmark-hotel-arbitration}
  26. Web. Landmark showdown: Minor, Danielson begin court fight, Lindsay Barnes III, March 13, 21009, retrieved October 25, 2015.
  27. Web. Minor Asks City for Help with Landmark Hotel, Henry Graff, NBC29.com, Aug 12, 2011
  28. 28.0 28.1 Web. Minor: 'Travesty of justice' on Landmark ruling, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, January 21, 2011, retrieved January 24, 2011.
  29. Web. http://www2.dailyprogress.com/business/2011/dec/07/judge-prioritizes-minors-landmark-debts-ar-1527954/, Samantha Koon, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, December 7, 2011, retrieved December 8, 2011.
  30. Web. Three bidders for Landmark Hotel emerge, Samantha Koon, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, June 14, 2012, retrieved June 15, 2012.
  31. Web. Developer Dewberry fires back over city's demands to secure former Landmark siteC-VILLE Weekly, Graelyn Brashear, Ocotber 30, 2013, retrieved October 24, 2015.
  32. 32.0 32.1 Web. Charlottesville officials set Planning Commission date on Landmark, Staff reports, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, December 5, 2013, retrieved December 6, 2013.
  33. Web. The Fat Radish's Ben Towill will develop new hotel restaurant, Kinsey Gidick, Charleston City Paper, April 13, 2015, retrieved April 14, 2015.
  34. Web. Ryan Casey Joins The Dewberry and Other New Details on the Upcoming Hotel [Updated], Erin Perkins, November 13, 2015, retrieved November 16, 2015.
  35. Web. Landmark’s last stand? More security, structural reports called for, Graelyn Brashear, C-VILLE Weekly, Portico Publications, January 22, 2014, retrieved January 22, 2013. Print. January 22, 2014 .
  36. Web. Construction on Landmark Hotel might not resume till 2016 - The Daily Progress: Local, Chris Suarez, April 18, 2105, retrieved October 24, 2015.
  37. Web. Mall rats: Does the Downtown Mall have a rodent problem?
  38. Shumener, Betty M., Henry H. Oh, and John D. Spurling. "Re: Minor Family Hotels, LLC vs Hotel Charlottesville." Letter to C. Connor Crook, Esquire, Boyle, Bain, Reback & Slayton. 28 June 2010. Charlottesville Tomorrow's Document Archive. Web. 2 July 2010. <http://www.cvilletomorrow.org/docs/ftp://cvilletomorrow@www.cvilletomorrow.org/httpdocs/docs/20100628-Landmark-Arbitration-Letter.pdf>
  39. Web. cc51a.html Council requests action plan on Landmark from city manager, Chris Suarez, Daily Progress, Lee Enterprises, January 20, 2016, retrieved February 18, 2016.

External links