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Marion Square Hotel plans sent back to drawing board
By Kathleen Dayton
Staff Writer
The city of Charleston’s Board of Architectural Review on Wednesday voted 5-1 against preliminary approval of plans for Marion Square Hotel, a 185-room structure that would replace the former Charleston County Library at 404 King St.
Downtown area residents, officials from preservation organizations, developers, architects and city officials crammed a meeting room in the Charleston County School District Building on Calhoun Street for about two hours to debate the design of the eight-story hotel, which would cap the northwest corner of Marion Square across from St. Matthew’s Lutheran Church and next to the Old Citadel.
Officials from the Historic Charleston Foundation and the Preservation Society of Charleston said they did not oppose plans for a hotel on the site, but think the current design is too massive for the location. Their main concerns about the project were in regard to its height, scale and mass, although the 105-foot-tall building is within the zoning limits approved for the site by the Board of Zoning Appeals.
One of the changes in the latest design renderings was a lower cornice line, which architects said would make the roof of the structure appear lower.
Plans for the hotel were launched in 2005 when it received conceptual approval for height, scale and mass. Bennett Hofford Co. owns the site and is developing the project with local architectural firm Goff D’Antonio & Associates Ltd, and the New York architectural firm Fairfax & Sammons.
Some who voiced opinions at the meeting said the hotel would not complement the many existing historic buildings in the area that are three and four stories high. Others pointed out there are several tall buildings in the area that are also historic, including the Francis Marion Hotel.
Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. sent his support for the project in a letter, stating, “I am pleased to endorse support for a project that I believe will become one of Charleston’s landmarks.”
Representatives from the downtown neighborhoods of Mazyck-Wraggborough supported the project, those from Ansonborough opposed it and a Harleston Village representative said the neighborhood is divided on the hotel plans.
Board member Henry Fishburne said the debate was similar to objections raised when the Charleston Place hotel was proposed in the 1980s.
“I see this as a signature building the way Charleston Place is,” Fishburne said. “If you listened to the tapes of the Charleston Place objections, I think you’d hear the same things you’re hearing today.”
The architectural firm will address all the comments from the meeting and begin its redesign efforts.
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