BPG proposes Wilmington's first luxury, boutique hotel

A Philadelphia-based hospitality company that operates luxury hotels in neighboring Pennsylvania will run the first luxury boutique hotel in Wilmington.

Delaware’s largest real estate developer, Buccini Pollin Group Inc., is collaborating with Method Co. on renovating 519 N. Market St. into a 25-room boutique hotel along with three food and beverage concepts – a rooftop lounge and event venue, a ground-floor restaurant and a lower-level cocktail lounge.

Method Co. and BPG are working with Philadelphia-based Stokes Architecture to renovate the former Security Trust & Safe Company Building, a two-story Victorian Romanesque brownstone designed by Frank Furness. The property is on the National Historic Registry.

"We are incredibly excited to build on all the momentum that is underway in the city of Wilmington and to be part of bringing one of the region’s most iconic buildings to life," Method Co. co-founder Randall Cook said in an emailed statement. "The hospitality nature of our project, with a boutique hotel and several restaurant concepts, will offer different experiences to be enjoyed by locals and visitors alike."

Downtowns across the country are slowly coming back to life after a year of lockdowns and restrictions to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, and local developers anticipate Wilmington and the state of Delaware will continue to be in the spotlight with Joe Biden as president. 

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"We believe that, partly due to the additional spotlight on Wilmington from Joe Biden’s presidency, the amount of leisure/experiential travel to Delaware has already increased significantly and will continue to do so," said Dave Pollin, co-founder of Buccini Pollin Group. "There are numerous international financial institutions with a major footprint in Wilmington. The legal community downtown also attracts significant business from around the country. These travel segments are less price-sensitive and often focus more on a hotel’s experiential offering than just the nightly room rate.” 

A term coined in the 1980s, a boutique hotel earns its name from its smaller size, personalized service and local personality it offers guests. These hotels often provide stylish, modern, fully furnished rooms for temporary and extended stays.

Method Residential manages three ROOST Apartment Hotel locations in Philadelphia, featuring studio, one- and two-bedroom units for weekly and monthly stays. Each space is fully furnished, and the hotels offer a variety of services, including dog walking and housekeeping. 

The hotel will provide an intimate boutique experience with staff focused on each guest in the 25 rooms, Pollin said. The North Market Street property will be rehabilitated entirely to meet the new use, reinforcing the building, adding an elevator and installing significant rooftop elements, developers said. They would not disclose the cost.

Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki expressed confidence the high-quality product would attract clientele, remarking that the city has struggled in the past to attract higher-end redevelopment. 

But now, it's "an embarrassment of riches," Purzycki said.

"All of a sudden, we’ve got all of these high-end products coming to the downtown. I’m happy to have them," he said. "It’s a problem that 10 years ago nobody would have ever dreamt we’d be having." 

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The new hotel is less than a half-mile from the iconic Hotel du Pont – also owned by BPG. Developers said the boutique hotel will be an entirely different experience from the Hotel du Pont. 

"With 217 rooms, the Hotel du Pont is much larger than the new property, appeals to a diverse group of business and leisure audiences, and provides a completely different experience," Pollin said. "The new project is a true boutique hotel with 25 differentiated rooms with custom furnishings and art. The hotel is much smaller in scale and will offer bespoke concierge services and personalized attention."  

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Four years ago, BPG purchased the historic Hotel du Pont from the DuPont Co., which had owned and operated the over-a-century-old hotel for most of its existence, and selected Washington, D.C.-based hotel management affiliate, PM Hotel Group, to run the 217-room hotel.

At the time of the sale, former hotel employees reflected on the building’s need for updates to attract young diners, remarking there's little demand for luxury hotels.

The Hotel du Pont was closed for three months last summer due to the pandemic, furloughing many of its employees in the process. When it reopened in July, the hotel laid off 11 employees. 

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The Hotel du Pont has had a four-diamond rating from AAA Mid-Atlantic for more than three decades, which means it provides guests with a personalized experience and attentive service in comfortable, high-quality surroundings. A weeknight rate for a luxury suite is about $440.

The Buccini Pollin Group manages or has developed hotels, including the Hampton Inn & Suites in the Washington, D.C., Navy Yard, according to its website, but none are what the hospitality industry would describe as a luxury boutique.

Purzycki expressed confidence the many projects going on throughout the city are helping improve neighborhoods. 

"Hopefully, it's these individual projects that push us up to a new level," he said. 

Pollin said the boutique hotel is slated to open next spring, and more details about the project, including the design and name, will be revealed later this year.