In the pink

Camellias, Bennett Hotel, Charleston

When I moved to Charleston my family lived a few blocks from the library and we traipsed back and forth carrying armfuls of books. The library was two stories and built of pink marble.

After the new library on Calhoun St. was built the shabby pink building sat abandoned for years. Not the spot is the grand new Bennett Hotel and some of the pink marble has been re-purposed into Camellias Bar. I did a quick walk through the lobby this weekend and grabbed a shot through the door.

Before & Almost After - Bennett Hotel at Marion Square

Hotel at Marion Square, Charleston, SC   

I've followed the progress of the construction of this hotel by going to the upper deck of the parking building across the street. When I moved to Charleston and lived a few blocks from this spot I was delighted to learn I was within easy walking distance of the main library (pictured below). It was a two story building designed with pink marble. It was dated and a grand new library was built leaving it abandoned for many years. The Bennett Hotel is quite a change for the area and is right on King St. next to Marion Square. Here are some details from the Moultrie News:

Hotel Bennett, the South’s grandest new hotel, will open in fall 2017 overlooking Charleston’s iconic and historic Marion Square.Years in the making and located on King Street – Charleston’s most prominent address – the hotel perfectly blends unparalleled luxury with an unmatched setting. Hotel Bennett, which is under construction, will be among the most significant lodging developments ever built in the Holy City and the State of South Carolina.It will feature 179 luxurious guestrooms and suites, a signature restaurant with stunning views of Charleston's famed park, and a stylish bar and lounge. The hotel will also include a spectacular rooftop pool with cabanas and bar, a luxury spa, a French patisserie, and a variety of grand event and flexible meeting spaces.

Before shot of the old library, King St., Charleston, SC   

Street view of the new hotel, King St., Charleston, SC     

Bennett Hotel at Marion Square

Bennett Hotel, Marion Square, Charleston, SC  

Once and awhile when I am marching down King St. I climb the steps to the Francis Marion parking garage and look down to see the progress of the hotel being built in the spot of our old library. After a long period where it didn't seem like much was happening it certainly is now. The hotel is to be nine stories high with a planned opening date of fall 2017.

The article in the Post & Courier does answer one question for me. The old library was built of pink marble and I had wondered where that might show up. It turns out they plan to built the hotel bar out of it.

Post & Courier: “There have been a few delays, so it might be a little bit behind schedule,” he said Thursday. “But when you’re taking a 100-year view, what’s a few months’ difference?”
At the groundbreaking about 18 months ago, he said he was building a structure that would be memorable a century later. The materials include limestone, copper and cypress. The bar being built off the lobby incorporates pink marble that was in the old library.
“This will be the five-star luxury hotel in downtown Charleston,” Bennett said Thursday. “I believe it will be finest hotel ever built in our city, certainly ever built in my lifetime.”

Before view of former library at Marion Square, Charleston, SC