Imperial Hotel (Portland, Oregon)

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This article is about the Imperial Hotel in Portland, Oregon, that is now named Hotel Vintage Plaza. For the Imperial Hotel in Portland that is now named Hotel Lucia, see New Imperial Hotel.
Imperial Hotel
The Hotel Vintage Plaza, on SW Broadway at Washington Street
Location422-426 S.W. Broadway, Portland, Oregon
Arealess than one acre
Built1894
ArchitectFrederick Manson White[3]
Architectural styleRichardsonian Romanesque
NRHP reference No.85003037[1][2]
Added to NRHPDecember 2, 1985[3]

The Hotel Vintage Plaza, formerly the Imperial Hotel and The Plaza Hotel, is a historic hotel building in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States. It was completed in 1894 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.[1]

History

Construction began in 1892, and the hotel opened in March 1894.[3] The building is in the Richardsonian Romanesque architectural style.[3] It has also been known as the Wells Building, after one of its builders, George F. Wells.[4]

A major expansion was built in 1909 in the form of a separate building, adjacent, known as the New Imperial Hotel. At the end of 1949, the two buildings that had comprised the Imperial were made into separate hotels, when the new building was sold. The original, 1894 building was renamed the Plaza Hotel, while the newer building retained the Imperial name[3] (named the Hotel Lucia since 2002).

A glass false storefront was removed in a renovation done in the 1980s, revealing the structure's lower level stonework. The hotel's former name appears in the stonework above the Washington Street entrance.[5] By at least the early 1980s[4] the building's use as a hotel had ended, although it continued to be commonly referred to as the Plaza Hotel, and was in use as an office building, formally known as Wells Financial Center.[6] However, it suffered from a high vacancy rate, attributed in part to an excess of available office space in downtown Portland.[6]

The building was designated a Portland historical landmark in spring 1985[4] and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1985.[1][7]

In 1989, the building was acquired by Kimco Hotel Management (now Kimpton Hotels & Restaurant Group) and remodeled as a boutique hotel.[8] Renamed the Hotel Vintage Plaza, it reopened in May 1991.[8]

Each room is themed after a local winery or vineyard. It was named one of the "Top 500 Hotels in the World" by Travel + Leisure magazine,[citation needed] and was named "most romantic hotel" by Citysearch Portland.[9][failed verification]

Gallery

  • The Imperial Hotel circa 1915
    The Imperial Hotel circa 1915
  • Stonework of the former Imperial name and 1894 date, above the Washington Street entrance
    Stonework of the former Imperial name and 1894 date, above the Washington Street entrance
  • Detail view of exterior, upper floors
    Detail view of exterior, upper floors

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Oregon National Register List" (PDF). Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. June 6, 2011. p. 34. Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  2. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  3. ^ a b c d e Heritage Investment Corporation (March 1985). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Imperial Hotel" (Document). National Park Service. {{cite document}}: Unknown parameter |accessdate= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |format= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |url= ignored (help)
  4. ^ a b c Sullivan, Ann (May 7, 1985). "Old political gathering place gets landmark status". The Oregonian, p. B7.
  5. ^ King, Bart (2001). An Architectural Guidebook to Portland, pp. 32-33. Gibbs Smith. ISBN 978-0-87071-191-6.
  6. ^ a b Shaw, Larry (May 31, 1987). "Downtown offices victims of chance". The Sunday Oregonian, p. D8.
  7. ^ "National Register of Historic Places: Multnomah County, Oregon". Retrieved August 9, 2011.
  8. ^ a b Filips, Janet (June 9, 1991). "Boutique hotelier likes Portland style" (profile of William D. Kimpton). The Sunday Oregonian, p. L7.
  9. ^ "Vintage Plaza Luxury Hotel in Historic Downtown Portland, Oregon". Retrieved 2007-07-27.

External links

Media related to Imperial Hotel, Portland, Oregon (old) at Wikimedia Commons

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