A well-known hotel location in Rochester has reopened this week.
It’s in the East End, at the corner of East Avenue and Alexander Street, which has been the site of a hotel for a number of years, previously the East Avenue Inn & Suites.
That hotel was torn down two years ago, and this week, a new Courtyard by Marriott opened up on that site. Thursday was a 'soft' opening for the hotel and there will be a formal ribbon cutting next week.
There are a few different partners in the venture including E. Philip Saunders, Essex Hotel Management, Flower City Management, and the contractor, Taylor, The Builders. That company’s CEO, Jim Taylor said that Marriott had wanted to be in downtown Rochester for some time now.
“They’re very excited about this specific product in this location, it’s a dynamic neighborhood, there are so many things that are offered, so many amenities that are offered through the Neighborhood of the Arts, so they’re very excited about placing a property here,” Taylor said.
Taylor said the new hotel will have 126 rooms, twice what the previous hotel had.
Taylor expects the new Courtyard by Marriott will be a solid addition to the local hotel landscape for both business and leisure travelers.
“It’s unlike any Courtyard I’ve ever seen, Marriott , through this iteration of their product, has increased room size, increased the size of public space; it feels more like a full service hotel than it does, like a limited service the traditional Courtyard brand . So I think people walking into the place are going to have a completely different feel.,” Taylor said.
The restaurant that had been on site, City Grill, closed a couple of years ago. It has separate ownership, but Taylor said that restaurant is expected to reopen this summer.
