With the Landmark Hotel still serving as the city’s largest monument to failed accomodations, it bears asking whether Charlottesville needs another hotel, no matter the size. Then again, for Whit Graves, maybe size matters after all.
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The Alcove condos—which sit in the thick of UVA traffic near the corner of Wertland and 14th streets, primed for graduation weekend renters—may become a 31-room hotel. Owner Whit Graves wants to wipe out 14th Street parking and move cars off-site. |
Last week, Graves brought early—very early—site plans for a 31-room hotel on student-mobbed 14th Street to the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) and Neighborhood Development Services (NDS). The site, 207 14th Street, is currently home to The Alcove, a 21-unit condo assessed at $2.2 million and completely owned by University Limited LLC—Graves, his mother and his uncle.
At the BAR meeting, member Brian Hogg criticized the plan’s “lack of articulation,” a comment that was echoed by a few other members. Given the sloppy student foot-traffic around 14th Street, the most pressing questions for Graves concerned traffic flow, from around a 15th Street entrance and valet to the Wertland Street garage, and maintaining public sidewalks on 14th Street, along what will be a pedestrian entrance to the hotel.
“The design is in the preliminary stages,” Graves told the BAR, and added that he “didn’t want to get too far in” before he presented early site plans and received feedback—not a bad idea, given how frequently a project might be tossed from the BAR to the drawing boards and back again. Plans would also add roughly one-and-a-half stories on top of the existing structure, to include two penthouses and a terrace, and would replace existing parking on 14th Street with some to-be-determined landscaping. University Limited is yet to hire an architect for the project.
Two neighboring property owners also offered Graves a final suggestion on Wednesday morning—think about investing in a pump station. They explained that when GrandMarc Apartments, the 200-plus-unit complex on 15th Street, came online, there was a noticeable pressure drop in the sewage lines.
“For some reason, I’ve always been fond of this building,” said Hogg. “More for its weirdness…” The sentiment was echoed by at least one other member of the BAR before the special use permit was unanimously recommended, to be sent on to City Council for approval.
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