Property
Report: HOTELS
Aging grande dame gets a facelift
 
More than cosmetics for
Montreal's Ritz-Carlton: The old, stone hotel is getting a glass addition
- and condos
Montrealers appreciate their old buildings and can get quite
annoyed when somebody proposes a radical facelift to a historic edifice -
recently, it was the glass cube addition proposed for the old Erskine and
American United Church that raised the ire of the architectural heritage
community.
But
a major facelift planned for a grande dame of Montreal - the Ritz-Carlton
hotel - that includes a glass and steel addition across one end and the top
of the century-old stone landmark has raised barely a whimper. That could be
because the $100-million renovation is better than what was rumoured to be
the alternative - seeing the hotel close.
Far
from closing, the hotel, which opened in 1912 with double rooms and a bath
going for $4.50 a night, will be getting an extensive makeover to bring it
up to modern standards, as well as to tap into a recent trend for hoteliers
- offering condo units.
The
Ritz-Carlton, at the corner of Sherbrooke and Mountain Streets along
Montreal's Golden Square Mile, was designed by famed New York architectural
firm Warren & Wetmore. An imposing neoclassical building with terra
cotta trim, it was inspired by the architecture of Robert and James Adam
It was the first hotel to bear the name
Ritz-Carlton, (although it isn't part of the global chain) and at the turn
of the 20th century, it epitomized opulence. Swiss hotelier César Ritz
allowed his name to be added to what was to be just the Carlton Hotel, but
with a number of conditions: Every unit had to have a bathroom, there had to
be a kitchen on each floor, 24-hour valet service, a concierge and a
sweeping staircase so that guests (gowned ladies in particular) could make a
grand entrance.
The Ritz-Carlton enjoyed many decades of prestige
but by the 1950s it was showing its age. In 1957, a wing was added, and in
1970 the bedrooms were revamped.
Now, Torriani Group, which manages the
property, and its partners, Mirelis Investments Ltd., a Montreal
wealth management and real estate financing firm, and Rolaco Group of
Geneva, which has interests in real estate, insurance and banking, are
undertaking its most profound makeover yet.
"When we did the first renovations back in
the 1970s, we built on the original template and that had its
limitations," says Andrew Torriani, president and chief executive
officer for the Ritz-Carlton. "We installed marble countertops, large
shower heads and so on, which were the latest thing then, but now we're
having to do much more than a cosmetic job. The electrical and mechanical
systems have to modernized, the air conditioning rumbles and the plumbing is
starting to calcify."
In addition to updating the operating systems, the
number of bedrooms and suites will fall to 130, from 229, to make way for
the bigger bathrooms (with double sinks and separate shower and bath),
demanded by today's travellers. The smaller number of rooms is also more
appropriate for the size of the high-end hotel market in Montreal, according
to Mr. Torriani. The 10-storey Ritz-Carlton will also be heightened by one
floor and enlarged, with 35 private residences and 15 condo suites. The
latter can, if owners wish, be rented out by the hotel, earning revenue for
both.
"By adding the condos and private residences,
we can broaden the customer base," says Fernand Roberge, chairman of
the Ritz-Carlton advisory committee. "The owners will be able to use
the services of the hotel but, of course, the revenues from the sale of the
residential units will also defray the cost of the hotel renovation."
Adding a residential component to help finance
construction or renovation is becoming a common practice among luxury hotel
operators around the world (Fairmont and Four Seasons are two examples). Mr.
Roberge, who has 40 years' experience in the hotel industry, is confident
that this formula will work just as well in Montreal. Although the new
condos are still at least a year away, he has already had more than 50
enquiries from would-be purchasers, through word-of-mouth referrals.
The new luxury residences and condo suites will
form an inverted L-shaped, glass and stainless steel shell across the top
and west side of the hotel building - an addition that will contrast to the
imposing limestone and terra cotta exterior of the original.
"In doing this renovation, we didn't just
want to imitate the old style," says Claude Provencher of Provencher
Roy + associés, the lead architectural firm on the project.
"So often that leads to a banal, pale
imitation, which, frankly, doesn't respect the integrity of the original
building. These faux add-ons tend to look awkward and we wanted to avoid
that.
"We wanted to preserve the integrity of the
original Ritz-Carlton and to that end, we have designed something that is
subtle, elegant and delicate. The look inside the hotel, though, will have
the same ambience as the original. We wouldn't dream of tampering with
that," Mr. Provencher says.
The exterior stonework will be cleaned and the
windows replaced, but the public spaces - the lobby, the Palm Court, the
Oval Room and the popular Jardin du Ritz with its flowerbeds and duck pond -
will remain much the same as before, albeit brought up to 21st century
building standards.
The major structural changes to the hotel will be
the addition of a spa, a rooftop swimming pool and health club, and a
remodelled restaurant, which in Montreal, with its fiercely competitive food
culture, had ceased to be one of the city's top eating places.
The grande dame of the Golden Square Mile is
expected to don her new livery in just over a year's time. The building
permits are in place and construction is expected to start later this
winter. All that remains is to decide whether the hotel should close in the
interim. That could be a bad public relations move, as people might think it
is closing altogether, but, Mr. Torriani says, if guests are not staying in
the hotel while the work is going on, it would speed up the makeover,
allowing it to quickly rejoin the ranks of the world's most prestigious
hotel properties.. 2008 January
22 THE
GLOBE & MAIL
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