Why are the most recent hotel developments in Delray generic buildings that do not participate in the life of Atlantic Ave or the downtown core?
Why don't most chain hotels reflect the communities they build in? We see this happening pretty much everywhere. They make decisions to build in places where people want to go, then add nothing to the character or culture that those communities are trying to showcase to their visitors and citizens. They stick out like sore thumbs in their surroundings, diminishing the value of the places they chose to build in because of their value. It makes no sense. Rather than creating a mutually beneficial relationship with their host place, they act like parasites – sucking money out of it while making it uglier and less special.
In Delray Beach, there are various large hotels (mostly chains) in the downtown. Only one effectively participates in adding to the qualities that the city represents and seeks to enhance them. The other hotels do not add to the community in any meaningful or valuable way and in fact create blank/dead zones with no character that take away value from the community.
The Colony Hotel - Delray Beach, Florida
The one hotel in Delray that adds value rather than subtracts it is The Colony Hotel. This yellow building with iconic red and yellow striped awnings that create a sunny, playful and relaxing look is a major attraction and asset in the downtown area. Its unique appearance makes it recognizable and memorable. This hotel is a main anchor along Atlantic Avenue, the main street which leads from well into the interior of town right to the ocean.
This hotel is a key anchor in downtown Delray Beach. It is on "the" central block of Atlantic Avenue and it needs to be the most important block on the way to the ocean. It is bright and vibrant with character that reflects Florida and Delray, and it gives the city core a recognizable look and feel. However, it is isolated amid 12 lanes of traffic and parking which just shows how removed from reality the transportation community is regarding what makes cities work...places that people want to visit and be part of.
The Colony Hotel is a landmark both inside and outside. The center of a community is where things are happening and where people want to gather. The visual character combined with the personality and energy of this hotel is what makes it a great candidate for the heart of town. This role can be supported by enhancing the hotel's surroundings with wider sidewalks, squares, and "inside out" elements that would give it the kind of activity that a heart of town deserves.
The hotel also interacts with local public life. For example, it hosts entertaining events and programs such as fashion shows.
Atlantic Crossing - A building that doesn't want to be there
The hotel here is a nice looking building with no concept of how to participate with its surroundings as a key anchor at a main intersection on Atlantic Avenue.
Delray Beach Hotels: The Great, the Bad, and the Even Worse
Generic, high-end hotels don't add anything to the character of a city. Rather, they have the effect of draining the energy out of important areas. All of them have little or no presence...They just suck life out of the downtown.
The Ray in Pineapple Grove
Architecture of The Ray is so close to being great. The inside is a building full of life. But coming from every direction along every street and corner, the hotel's charms are camouflaged by massive amounts of plantings outside and reflective glass. All active uses, mostly restaurants, are hidden by plants and signs telling you how to get into the restaurants behind all the plants...
It wouldn't take much to turn this into the major hub that Pineapple Grove needs as a main anchor. The important thing is to create more visibility and interaction between the hotel and the street.
The worst part of the Ray on Pineapple Grove Drop Off is the car port, which kills the connection between the inside and outside of the building.
The entire building is isolated within reflective glass and landscaping.
A few weeks ago, we came downtown to have lunch on Atlantic Avenue. We walked along Pineapple Grove's second street to where it connected with Atlantic. This is what we saw...just two people having lunch and no one in front of The Ray.
Across the street where there are some pretty good restaurants...
On the other hand, the lively intersection at Atlantic and SE Second was full of people. A lively area attracts foot traffic and visitation to businesses like restaurants and cafes.
Delray's Seagate Hotel
The Seagate has a limited impact on Atlantic with activity on two ends. Unfortunately, it is elevated above the sidewalk all along Atlantic Avenue, reducing its connection to the street.
The Opal Grand and the A1A Intersection
This beach-facing corner is the most valuable corner in Delray Beach as it is for most coastal towns. The hotel here has a hedge that acts as a wall along both sides of the corner, hiding a swimming pool next to the beach while the ocean sits a few steps away. It could interact with its surroundings in a beautiful way but instead creates a barrier between inside and out.
On Atlantic Avenue, the Opal Grand has a drop off and a building face that is all about the look of the architecture...not about how people experience and enjoy the building.
The restaurant is set above the street, adding a sense of being aloof and above all the activity below. Extending the sidewalks and having an extended cafe along the widened Atlantic Avenue would transform this into an iconic destination.
Other Delray Beach Hotels
The rest of the hotels in town are generic buildings with nothing identifiable about them. It's even hard to tell that they are hotels, that's how few recognizable features they have. They add little and take away from the values and character that define the city.
Hyatt Place on NE 2nd and Pineapple Grove
This building could be a key destination and gateway on what is the most important street in Delray Beach after Atlantic Avenue, but it has no evident uses except for funneling cars in and out. With its featureless walls and generic look, it is another development that absorbs life out of the community rather than adding to it.
The Loft on Federal South Bound offer nothing to the public realm other than the largest carport we have ever seen.
Courtyard by Marriott on Federal North Bound also offers nothing.
Benchmarks - Great Hotels
There is a way to do hotels right. They need to be integrated into their host city and highlight what makes it great. In this way, they can become treasured members of the community rather than unwelcome guests.
Adelphi Hotel in Saratoga Springs
The liveliness of the sidewalk plaza/porch in front of the historic Adelphi Hotel is a significant part of why the hotel is a local landmark. The Colony can learn a lot from Adelphi about how to enliven the public space around its entrance.
Colony Hotel in Palm Beach
Miami Beach, Florida
With Art Deco buildings lining Ocean Drive on one side, and a park and extensive beach on the other, streets in Miami Beach are not about traffic, but about experiencing the "show" and enjoying the sights. Many buildings have porches from which people can view the passing throngs of visitors.
Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue
It's all about sidewalks and café life here, starting with porches and the double loading of sidewalks (when there are amenities and offerings on both sides of the walkway). It is a model for everywhere hotels can be found on main streets.
Double Loaded Sidewalks
Outside seating
Miami Beach is a "classic" unlike any other waterfront.
"Porches"
Collins Avenue's Art Deco
Other Hotels That Interact Well With Their Surroundings
London - Ham Hotel
Lobby/Common Area
London Ham Hotel
Roof Restaurant and Garden
London - Charlotte Street Hotel
Barcelona - Majestic Hotel
Majestic Hotel
Grand Army Plaza, The Pulitzer Fountain, and The Plaza Hotel
Main Entrance
Side Entrance
Hotels are important parts of the street and need extra attention as landmarks. They represent the host city to visitors and are important links between a city and the broader world. The most beloved and memorable ones contribute to how the city is defined and are iconic destinations within it. The Colony in Delray Beach is a great example of that and the rest of the hotels in the area should follow its lead.
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Fred Kent