CHARLESTON, S.C. — Bennett Hospitality has broken ground on a $101 million, 185-key hotel project located at King Street and Marion Square in downtown Charleston.
The more than 200,000-square-foot, eight-story luxury hotel will feature 185 guest rooms and a grand lobby entrance off King Street. A bi-level, fine-dining restaurant overlooking one of Charleston’s most renowned green spaces, Marion Square, and a separate full bar and lounge area will be among the hotel’s amenities.
Additionally, patrons will have access to a rooftop pool with cabanas and bar, along with a full-service spa. Meeting space — some located on the roof — and a ballroom will also be available.
“I worked on this hotel for 12 years to get all of the entitlements required,” says Michael Bennett, founder and owner of Bennett Hospitality. “Beautiful limestone, marble, bronze and copper — it will be built the way they built buildings 100 years ago. It will be built to last.”
Marion Square is a 6.5-acre greenspace in downtown Charleston that served as the green for the Citadel military college in the 19th century and early 20th century. Today it serves as a public park under lease by the city of Charleston.
Balfour Beatty Construction is serving as the project’s developer. An operator for the hotel has not been chosen yet, and won’t likely be for several months, according to a representative for Bennett. The hotel is expected to be completed during the summer of 2017.
Bennett Hospitality is a locally owned development company in Charleston. The company owns 16 hotels and eight restaurants in four states.
— Scott Reid