RTKL Associates Inc. have been successfully shortlisted for the Lobby/Public Areas/Lounge Award in the International Hotel & Property Awards 2014 with the Loews Annapolis Hotel.
Sitting at the heart of one of the most historic cities on the East Coast, the renovation of this hotel provided a much needed facelift to a top hotel in the region and established a connection to the local flavour of the city.
The design team reconfigured the lobby space, forming a symmetrical and balanced layout by moving the reception desk from a far corner to its new front-and-centre location across from the hotel entrance. Annapolis is long known for its nautical, especially sailing history. The design was intended to give the hotel a sense of regional place by bringing in the sailing history. Skipjacks were the most common sailing vessel on the Chesapeake Bay thus the mosaic tile mural behind the reception desk is a detail of a skipjack.
Nautical-inspired elements create a sense of place. A monumental 27-foot Italian mosaic wall depicting an abstract view of the mast of a sailboat anchors the reception area. Natural hemp rope is elevated and stacked vertically to create the façades of the reception pods. They also feature in the lobby’s decorative screens, which were designed by a regional artist and speak to the rich history of the nearby naval academy.
Dark grey and white marble stripes bring drama and add a chic look to the lobby flooring, with other colour inspiration coming from local materials such as the blue slate and black iron grills found in the colonial homes and store fronts surrounding the city. The relationship from the front door to the reception desk was changed from the original lobby to give immediate visual access from the entry. The desk was broken into small pods versus a continuous long desk to enhance guest experience. The design is routed in the local history of the Annapolis and now has a regional context.
