Hyatt Regency Savannah

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Hyatt Regency Savannah
Hyatt Regency Savannah.jpg
The building's lobby in 2011
Hyatt Regency Savannah
Hotel chain Hyatt Regency
General information
StatusCompleted
Type Hotel
Address2 West Bay Street
Savannah, Georgia, U.S.
Coordinates 32°04′54″N81°05′29″W / 32.0816°N 81.0915°W / 32.0816; -81.0915 Coordinates: 32°04′54″N81°05′29″W / 32.0816°N 81.0915°W / 32.0816; -81.0915
Completed1980;43 years ago (1980)
Technical details
Floor count6
Design and construction
DeveloperMerritt Dixon
Website
Official website

Hyatt Regency Savannah is a high-rise hotel in Savannah, Georgia. Built in 1980, [1] it stands adjacent to Savannah City Hall at Bay Street's downtown midsection.

Contents

Originally envisioned as a 14-story structure in Savannah's Historic District, a long battle with the Historic Savannah Foundation concluded with a compromise being reached of its being limited to six storeys. Another source of controversy is that it bridged River Street, physically dividing the waterfront in two, [1] although the air rights were actually a remnant of the preceding structure, the Wilcox and Gibbs Guano Company. [2] A tunnel allows pedestrian and vehicle access along the street.

Facilities

The hotel has a swimming pool, a fitness center and a lounge. [3]

Savannah ga night.jpg
The hotel is to the right of City Hall in this view south over the Savannah River

Waterfront location

Previous structures

Long before the site became occupied by the hotel, two ranges of buildings — Bolton Range and Habersham & Harris Range — stood on the lot, part of Commerce Row. [4] These buildings were replaced by the Neal Blun Building, which stood between 1889 and 1969, and (to the west) the M. Ferst and Company grocery store. [5] The Ferst building was completed in September 1888, but Moses Ferst, a native of Bavaria, died eleven months later, aged 60. [6]

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References

  1. 1 2 "Editor's Note: A developer’s vision – and a building controversy" – Connect Savannah
  2. Savannah Morning News, July 14, 1889
  3. Explore Our Hotel – Hyatt Regency Savannah
  4. Lost Savannah: Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society , Luciana M. Spracher (2003), p. 93
  5. Lost Savannah: Photographs from the Collection of the Georgia Historical Society , Luciana M. Spracher (2003), p. 94
  6. Savannah Morning News, August 15, 1889