Spandrel Development Partners is set to bring Marriott International's W Hotels brand to Charlotte, N.C., as the hospitality anchor of the 400 South Tryon development.
The 200-key hotel—which will have 173 guestrooms and 27 suites—is being developed in partnership with boutique real estate investment and development firm 7G Group. The hotel will span floors one through nine of the building, with a signature rooftop food-and-beverage venue on the 34th floor. Plans also call for 12,000 square feet of meeting space, a ground-floor restaurant and coffee bar, ballroom and pre-function space. The 18,000-square-foot rooftop venue is expected to be Charlotte's highest rooftop bar.
Charlotte’s Growing Demand for Luxury Hospitality
Charlotte's continued corporate growth, investment and expanding entertainment landscape make the city a “natural fit” for the W Hotels brand, the company said in a statement. Major employers including SMBC and Capital Group are expected to bring approximately 2,600 jobs within two blocks of the hotel, while the $1.3 billion modernization of Bank of America Stadium—including a new 4,000-person music venue—and ongoing investment in Spectrum Center continue to strengthen uptown as a year-round destination for sports, entertainment and major events.
"Charlotte's luxury hotel market is well-established, but it is missing a true luxury lifestyle hotel built around music, culture, and curated social experiences," Emanuel Neuman, co-founder of Spandrel Development Partners, said in a statement. "W Hotels is a strong fit for where Charlotte is today and where it is headed, as it experiences remarkable growth while continuing to build a vibrant cultural identity. With new, impactful investments in entertainment and dining, Charlotte is evolving into the kind of dynamic destination that makes it ideal for W Hotels.”
Local Design
Designed by Rockwell Group with LS3P as architect of record, the aesthetic of the W Charlotte will draw from the city itself. Rockwell's design concept explores Charlotte through an "abstract collage of urban rhythms," taking cues from the city's music heritage, architecture, Southern character and evolution into a modern urban center. The concept also draws inspiration from Charlotte native artist Romare Bearden, whose layered collage work reflected the rhythms of jazz and urban life.
The transformation includes a complete replacement of the building's original curtain wall with a contemporary panelized glass façade, giving the tower an entirely new presence on the Charlotte skyline. Those influences will carry throughout the guest experience, beginning with a new arched porte-cochère off Martin Luther King Jr Blvd and continuing into a double-height welcome area and Living Room. The design uses warm woods, natural stone, brass, rich textiles, sculptural elements and a palette of earthy and jewel tones.
“The opportunity at 400 South Tryon is not simply to renovate an existing building, but to completely reimagine how it contributes to uptown,” said Ian Levine, co-founder of Spandrel Development Partners. “Rockwell Group, LS3P and CetraRuddy, serving as conceptual design architect, are creating something that feels connected to Charlotte while delivering the energy and experience people expect from W Hotels. We want that experience to begin the moment guests arrive and carry all the way to the rooftop.”
The hotel will be the hospitality component of Spandrel's larger redevelopment of 400 South Tryon, a mixed-use project will turn the former 1970s office tower into a new destination combining the 200-key hotel with 399 unbranded studio, one-, two and three-bedroom residences. The project will be the second in Spandrel's expanding hospitality platform, following the firm's announcement in June of the $32 million, 154-key AC Hotel Research Park in Huntsville, Alabama. Together, the projects reflect the company’s strategy of developing distinctive hospitality destinations in high-growth Southeast markets.