The developer of The Industrialist, Pittsburgh’s newest Downtown hotel, is aiming for an October opening that will add 124 rooms, meeting space and a restaurant to the hospitality scene.
HRI Properties LLC, based in New Orleans, is renovating the Arrott Building at 401 Wood St., which will become one of Marriott’s Autograph Collection of boutique hotels. Room rates will range from $199 to $599.
“Pittsburgh is one of America’s greatest centers for business and repeatedly finds itself on lists of top cities for job growth, livability and innovation. We were attracted to Pittsburgh’s resilient economy and impressive growth in the last decade,” says Michael Coolidge, chief investment and development officer for HRI Properties.
The company eyed the Arrott Building for several years before acquiring it in 2017, he says. Constructed in 1902, the 18-story building housed offices for years before falling vacant, and its renovation is estimated to cost $19 million. HRI Properties “liked the Fourth Avenue district due to its historic nature and prime location within Downtown,” Coolidge says.
The Industrialist pays homage to Pittsburgh’s “unique character of innovation and maker mentality,” he says. Few of Downtown’s boutique hotels “showcase what Pittsburgh is all about. The Industrialist provides the best of both worlds — an authentic Pittsburgh experience and Marriott loyalty benefits.”
The lobby will have two rooms with more than 1,100 square feet of meeting space — the Conflux, which will seat 48 with eight round tables, and the Library, which will seat 10 boardroom style. A social lounge will serve specialty drinks and small bites, including coffee in the mornings.
The Industrialist will feature a modern restaurant, The Rebel Room, offering American fare and craft cocktails.
Among the guest rooms will be 12 suites with views of the Monongahela River. The upscale décor will include brass fixtures, luxe textiles and smoked glass. The hotel will be pet-friendly and will have a fitness center.
This will be Marriott’s second Autograph hotel in Pittsburgh. Concord Hospitality developed the first, The Oaklander, a 167-room hotel in the former Pittsburgh Athletic Association property in Oakland.
Among other new hotels are the 160-room Even Hotel in the former Macy’s building, Downtown; the TRYP Hotel, a Wyndham brand, with 108 rooms in the former Washington Education Center in Lawrenceville; the 97-room Fairfield Inn and Suites, Downtown; and the Moxy Hotel, another Marriott brand, in the former Saks Fifth Avenue building, Downtown.
Rivers Casino is planning a seven-story, 221-room hotel next to the Carnegie Science Center and a 220-room hotel is part of the Penguins’ master plan for redeveloping the Lower Hill District.
The Downtown hotel market has more than 6,000 guest rooms and occupancy averaged 68 percent in 2018, according to the latest data available from the Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership.
