^^ Cool video. Wish it was longer. I'm impressed with the level of detail going into the restoration.

Meh!  I viewed the video and I'm still not impressed, but hoping for the best.  Hopefully this will be the best Dreary Plaza Hotel in the Dreary chain.

Meh!  I viewed the video and I'm still not impressed, but hoping for the best.  Hopefully this will be the best Dreary Plaza Hotel in the Dreary chain.

 

Have you stayed at any of their other properties?  Considering this a high non-high-end hotel chain, this is definitely a departure for them and is definitely a high profile addition to their portfolio.  I'm happier to see it used for this purpose than stay a vacant former Board of Education building.

Meh!  I viewed the video and I'm still not impressed, but hoping for the best.  Hopefully this will be the best Dreary Plaza Hotel in the Dreary chain.

 

Have you stayed at any of their other properties?  Considering this a high non-high-end hotel chain, this is definitely a departure for them and is definitely a high profile addition to their portfolio.  I'm happier to see it used for this purpose than stay a vacant former Board of Education building.

 

Yes San Antonio and I was not impressed.  Granted I'm not Drury customer.  I don't like that this brand purchased the property, and would have preferred a brand, developer or hotel franchise/operator (with a bigger loyalty program) purchase the property.  This should be a St.  Regis, Penisula, Le Meridien, a Park Hyatt, a Waldor=Astoria, a Conrad or a Mandarin Oriental.

 

Those are all brands with better NAME brand recognition connected to powerful loyalty (marketing) programs.  The Drury brand has such a small footprint.

 

Having said that, the building is now an adaptive reuse and I am VERY happy about that.  I just hope this property doesn't turn over after a few years due to the reasons I listed above.  It's not like we have a ton of rooms and we need a lower end brand.  Cleveland needs higher end brands - than we currently have - as those properties are the places visitors want to stay.  In addition, travelers will be able redeem points earned for travel.  The Autograph, The Westin and Inter-Continental are the places people want to stay.  I expect the Kimpton & Hilton to be apart of this group once complete and the Renaissance once renovated.

I too wished the bldg ended up with a better, higher end chain. However, if it does fail, providing irreversible damage wasn't done, a St. Regis, Penisula, Le Meridien, etc. can still come in later.

Their website states they are accepting reservations July 30, 2016

 

https://druryhotels.com/locations/cleveland-oh/drury-plaza-hotel-cleveland#overview

I don't understand this announcement regarding taking reservations starting July 31. It says it will be opening in the spring. The convention is in mid July.

So is it going to be ready or not for the convention?

I don't understand this announcement regarding taking reservations starting July 31. It says it will be opening in the spring. The convention is in mid July.

So is it going to be ready or not for the convention?

 

It would seem that is the date by which they are sure they would be able to accept reservations from the general public. There obviously wouldn't be any reservations for the time during RNC itself, as those rooms are already reserved. It doesn't seem that they have an official opening date yet, but once they do, they will probably open up reservations for the period before the RNC. Just a guess

They will probably have a soft opening for the RNC convention and use the RNC as a way to fix any problems before an official opening.

Scheduled to open in mid-April

 

 

Drury Plaza Hotel readies for debut in former Cleveland Board of Education building

 

By Susan Glaser, The Plain Dealer

on January 07, 2016 at 8:37 AM

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The former Cleveland Board of Education building, a historic beauty neglected for decades, is readying for her second act: as an upscale hotel in the heart of downtown.

 

The transformation is nearly complete: Cubicles and workspaces are being remade into modern guestrooms; slabs of marble are being restored on the walls; and the well-worn, two-story auditorium is in the midst of a conversion into an elegant gathering space for business meetings and weddings.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/travel/index.ssf/2016/01/former_cleveland_board_of_educ.html

Well at least the public spaces will be nice :) We will see how the rooms end up.

This article states that they will have a small bar and restaurant. A while back it was stated that a public restaurant had been eliminated from the plans. I wonder if this has been brought back into the design? Interesting. It would be a huge plus to have a bar/restaurant here

^I can't image a hotel that size that doesn't have a restaurant open to the public--business breakfast meetings at hotel are very common. Would be a stupid mistake of Drury not to have a restaurant.

^The article mentioned a public bar/restaurant will be included.

New Drury hotel is nearing finish line (Photos)

http://www.crainscleveland.com/article/20160228/NEWS/160229866/new-drury-hotel-is-nearing-finish-line?X-IgnoreUserAgent=1

Wow, those are some seriously terrible bathrooms...

Wow, those are some seriously terrible bathrooms...

 

What's wrong with them? They look OK to me. Besides you only spend as much time in there as it takes to stink up the place or slather on some deodorant and you're done.

 

So I hope those pics were snapped a month ago. Otherwise how are they going to finish that up in two months?

Wow, those are some seriously terrible bathrooms...

 

Agreed.  Those look like they should be the bathroom of a seriously design impared 90 year old.

Yeah, those bathrooms ARE awful...olive green tile? Really? It's depressing.

Wow I didn't realize bathrooms mattered so much. The only thing that matters to me in the hotel room is the price, cleanliness, the comfort of the bed and the quality of the TV/programming.

Bathroom design is a sign of paying attention to details. For literally no cost difference to them they could have selected that exact same tile in a grey and the bathroom would have immediately been better.

 

The selections they made all just scream "cheap 90s hotel" and there really isn't any good reason for not going with something more current.

 

Everyone starts their day in the bathroom. The space around you does have psychological effects on your mood and can sway how your day will go. Being in an ugly, dated looking space isn't the best way for your guests to start their day whether they realize it or not.

I've been staring at the picture of the bathroom trying to figure out what it is that was so offensive to you guys. So it's just the color?? Sheesh. I think they look nice

It's objectively dated. This type of bathroom hasn't been current in well over a decade. Building something brand new to look like a hotel that's in need of updating is silly.

 

And it's more than the color of the tile.

 

The countertops are a type of granite that has been on its way out for at the very least 5 years. They should have gone with quartz for no cost difference.

 

The mirror frame is questionable.

 

The art is tacky and clashes with every color selection in the room.

 

The tile work is just all around crappy. None of the joint lines align on the nosing band in relation to the field tile. That's just lazy tile work.

 

The wall color is gross and looks like a white room that has been smoked in for decades.

 

The white air vent cover is far too contrasting with everything else in the room and draws attention to it which is the opposite of what you want.

 

The robe hook being next to the toilet is a bad placement. You want your fabrics away from the spray of the toilet.

 

The toilet isn't properly centered in its nook.

 

All this adds up to a room that isn't very good.

The space around you does have psychological effects on your mood and can sway how your day will go.

 

Focus on thyself and all the strength that lies within, my easily distracted grasshopper. ;)

Haha, hey, I'm an architect. There's no shutting this off (unfortunately lol).

Are the Drury Plaza rooms really intended to be a hip, modern décor though?  The tile color could have been better but I'm guessing their intent is a more classy look?

I never said hip or modern in my critique. I said current. Current =/= modern. I work on tons of classy places that are timeless but don't appear dated whatsoever.

 

This isn't a classy look. It's a cheap look. If they were going for classy they missed the mark. There are so many affordable ways to create a timeless design that would appeal to current tastes while having longevity.

Overall, the rooms seems an odd-mix of non-styles, but Drury's Hotels are never in my own consideration set, so I'll never have to deal with it.

 

The tile work is just all around crappy. None of the joint lines align on the nosing band in relation to the field tile. That's just lazy tile work.

 

This - I just cannot unsee. That kind of crap just drives me crazy. Looks like they got a good deal on 12x10" tiles, but the best price on bands was only for the 8" and they thought - "Eh, what the hell"...

It is common for the bull-nose (trim tile) to be a different size from the field tile.  I don't see a problem with that.  This is a hotel bathroom people.  The building is getting restored.  Focus on the big picture.

Different? Yes. But you're supposed to buy the bullnose that shares a common denominator with the field tile so they can align in some manner. They sort of tried in the shower but clearly the pattern gets off because the bullnose is some small amount larger than the field tile. It's just a generally sloppy selection and installation.

I concede the point on the shower.  I was only looking at the horizontal alignment of the bullnose tile. The vertical should side should line up or be 1.5 different in size.  Having it just slightly larger looks weird.  Perhaps they will put a shower door there which will break ip up anyway.

Update from today -- Drury Hotel renovations

Update from today?  Just curious.

 

Update from today?  Just curious.

 

 

See text atop the photo.

 

So... I was really surprised to see the hotel opens today!!  Clearly it isn't done, but done enough.  Check it out: http://www.cleveland.com/travel/index.ssf/2016/04/drury_plaza_hotel_opens_in_the.html#incart_gallery

 

Stunning! I have to say, I've stayed at a Drury in Columbus, and I had VERY low expectations for this company and the project.  They exceeded it tremendously.

Awesome.  I've always loved this building going back when it was BOE's HQ.  It's tan/burnt orange facade and more Federalist detailing always made it stand out from the white-stone, Classical architecture of the other Group Plan buildings (the Library, City Hall, Metzenbuam Courthouse, etc) of which BOE was the last.  It looks even gorgeous-er re-purposed as a luxury hotel.  Can't wait to visit.

That lap pool looks awesome.

Wow! Looks great and so much better than many expected

I can't believe they are open... Drove by today and could still use another 3-4 weeks of construction time on the exterior work to say that least.

 

I know! I've been looking down at it everyday. They literally JUST finished the driveway and opened.  Quite a speedy timeline. The landscaping is totally incomplete but that seems to be next.

 

 

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A well done job.  Does anyone have pictures of the canopy that has been added to the east facade?  I wish the framed photos of Cleveland vistas were changed to art that matched the amazing painted murals .  They just seem out of place and framed incorrectly for the grandeur.

It sure is a looker. There is a lot of landscaping left to do but that shouldn't be a surprise with the crappy weather.

Thanks Mendo!  It looks better than the renderings !

That monument sign and canopy are barely noticeable, and that seemed to be a major concern for many.  All in all this project may be the biggest surprise of the recent hotel additions, certainly up there with Kimpton!

I have to admit I was skeptical about this company, and especially over the canopy. But I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the Cle.com pictures yesterday. This whole project looks fantastic, and the canopy in particular blends in very nicely. At first glance, I didn't even realize there was a canopy there.

This has to be the nicest Drury Hotel in the history of the brand, right? I always associated the Drury brand with cheap suburban hotels, but this hotel looks on-par with the Kimpton. I am very pleasantly surprised.

The Drury Plaza is their upscale brand.  There's a handful of them and it seems like a lot of them are pretty nice.

Whatever your thoughts on Drury I am really impressed by how great this looks. New landscaping and lights going in today.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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The exterior looks great, though I suspect that's due to the requirements of the preservation credits as much as any decisions Drury made. I was sort of underwhelmed by the design of the hotel rooms, to be honest. At least based on the Cleveland.com slideshow. But definitely happy with the project overall. Nice to see more life coming on East 6th and the Mall.