Hotel Utica

Hotel Utica is a historic hotel building in downtown Utica, New York. Designed by the Buffalo architectural firm Esenwein & Johnson for United Hotels Company of America, it opened on March 11, 1912, as a substantial fireproof property intended to serve the city’s business, civic, and social life. The original hotel contained 200 rooms, four dining rooms, a ballroom, an assembly hall, a ladies’ restaurant, and a grill and café described at the time as serving gentlemen. Three additional floors were added in 1926, bringing the room count to 250. For much of the twentieth century, Hotel Utica operated as one of the city’s prominent lodging and event venues. Its reported guests included entertainers Judy Garland, Mae West, and Bobby Darin; baseball figure Mickey Mantle; Western-film performer Hopalong Cassidy; President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt; and Vice President Dick Cheney. These associations contributed to the building’s local cultural significance, although the hotel’s business later declined. It ceased operating as a hotel in 1972 and was subsequently used for adult-care residences, first as Hunter House and later as Loretto Adult Residence. The property then stood vacant for a period. Local investors Joseph R. Carucci and Charles N. Gaetano acquired the building and led a major rehabilitation between 1999 and 2001. The approximately $13 million restoration, supported in part by public funding, was modeled on the restoration of Washington, D.C.’s Willard Hotel. Hotel Utica reopened in 2001, restoring its role as a lodging and hospitality property. The redevelopment nevertheless faced financial pressure, including difficulty meeting loan obligations and unpaid property and school taxes. The City of Utica reportedly spent substantial sums covering unmet obligations, while the property was marketed for sale in 2009. In 2006, the property became affiliated with Choice Hotels International, while ownership remained private. A later ownership and operating transition occurred in May 2016, when hotel management company Visions Hotels purchased Hotel Utica. Visions subsequently reached an agreement with Hilton Worldwide to carry out a property-improvement plan and convert the hotel to the DoubleTree by Hilton system. Renovation work began in fall 2016, and the property celebrated its reopening under the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Utica name on October 24, 2017. The property therefore operates both as a historic local landmark and as a contemporary chain-affiliated hotel. Its present positioning combines preservation of a landmark building with the standardized guest services and marketing reach associated with the DoubleTree by Hilton brand. It serves accommodation, meetings, banquets, dining, and civic or political events in the Utica market. In August 2018, Donald Trump spoke at a fundraiser for Representative Claudia Tenney at the hotel; the event was described in reference material as the first visit by a president to the hotel and the Mohawk Valley in nearly 70 years.

Hotel Utica was conceived as a major early twentieth-century hotel for Utica, New York. United Hotels Company of America commissioned Esenwein & Johnson, a Buffalo architectural firm, to design the building. The resulting structure used fireproof construction and opened on March 11, 1912. Its original program reflected the expectations of a large city hotel of the period: 200 guest rooms were complemented by four dining rooms, a ballroom, an assembly hall, a restaurant for women, and a grill and café for men. The hotel was designed not merely for overnight lodging but also for formal meals, public gatherings, receptions, and local social life. In 1926, the building was expanded vertically by adding its top three floors. This increased capacity to 250 rooms and extended the hotel’s usefulness as Utica’s commercial and civic profile developed. Over the years, Hotel Utica hosted a wide range of notable visitors, including Judy Garland, Mickey Mantle, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, Hopalong Cassidy, Mae West, Bobby Darin, and Vice President Dick Cheney. These visits helped establish the property as one of the city’s best-known hospitality landmarks. The hotel’s fortunes declined in the postwar period. It stopped operating as a hotel in 1972 and was converted to adult-care use. The building operated first as Hunter House and later as Loretto Adult Residence. Afterward it experienced a period of vacancy, raising concerns about the future of a large historic structure in downtown Utica. Local investors Joseph R. Carucci and Charles N. Gaetano later purchased the property and undertook a large-scale rehabilitation from 1999 through 2001. The project cost approximately $13 million and was patterned after the restoration of the Willard Hotel in Washington, D.C. Public funding helped support the restoration, and the building reopened as a hotel in 2001. The revival was commercially difficult, however. Loan payments became problematic, and the City of Utica reportedly incurred about $500,000 per year in costs associated with unmet obligations. The owners also accumulated property and school-tax arrears and fell behind on the remaining balance of a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development loan. In 2009, the property was offered for sale at $10.7 million. Hotel Utica joined Choice Hotels International as a franchise in 2006, although the property remained privately owned. The next major change came in May 2016, when Visions Hotels, a Corning, New York-based hotel management company, acquired the hotel. Visions pursued a new chain affiliation and arranged with Hilton Worldwide to complete a property-improvement plan for conversion to DoubleTree by Hilton. Renovations began in fall 2016, culminating in a grand reopening on October 24, 2017, as the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Utica. The current identity reflects this layered history. The property remains known as Hotel Utica because of its landmark status and long local history, while its operating identity is tied to DoubleTree by Hilton. It combines restored historic architecture and event facilities with contemporary branded-hotel operations. Its venue has also continued to attract high-profile public events; on August 13, 2018, Donald Trump appeared there at a fundraiser for Representative Claudia Tenney. Reference material characterized the appearance as the first visit by a president to the hotel and the Mohawk Valley in nearly seven decades.

• 2018

  Presidential fundraiser held at the hotel

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  Donald Trump spoke at a fundraiser for Representative Claudia Tenney at Hotel Utica on August 13.

• 2017

  Conversion to DoubleTree by Hilton completed

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  After renovations and a Hilton property-improvement plan, the hotel reopened as DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Utica on October 24.

• 2016

  Visions Hotels acquires the property

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  Visions Hotels purchased Hotel Utica in May and began preparations for a new branded-hotel conversion.

• 2006

  Choice Hotels affiliation begins

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  Hotel Utica became a franchise of Choice Hotels International while remaining privately owned.

• 2001

  Historic rehabilitation completed

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  A major rehabilitation project completed between 1999 and 2001 brought the building back into hotel use.

• 1972

  Hotel operations cease

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  The property stopped operating as a hotel and was later converted to adult-care residences.

• 1926

  Three upper floors added

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  An expansion added the top three floors and increased the hotel’s capacity to 250 rooms.

• 1912

  Hotel Utica opens

  [1]Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org

  The 10-story fireproof hotel opened on March 11 with 200 rooms, multiple dining facilities, a ballroom, and an assembly hall.

A historic, full-service Utica hotel combining landmark architecture and restored civic-event spaces with the operating standards and distribution network of DoubleTree by Hilton.

• Hotel accommodation · 1912

  Guest rooms and suites

  The property’s core offering is overnight accommodation in a restored historic hotel building. The original property opened with 200 rooms and expanded to 250 rooms in 1926. Current room inventory and specific room categories are not stated in the supplied reference material.

• Hospitality and events · 1912

  Meeting, ballroom, and event facilities

  Hotel Utica was originally built with a ballroom, assembly hall, and multiple dining rooms, making events an important part of its purpose. The restored property continues to be associated with meetings, banquets, fundraisers, and other public or private functions, although detailed current facility specifications are not provided.

• Branded hotel · 2017

  DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Utica

  The hotel’s current operating identity was established through a conversion to the DoubleTree by Hilton system. Renovations began in 2016 under a Hilton property-improvement plan, and the property held its branded reopening in October 2017.

• 2016

  Visions Hotels purchases Hotel UticaM&A

  Background

  The property had a long history of financial and operational difficulties despite its historic importance and prior rehabilitation.

  Action taken

  Visions Hotels acquired the hotel in May 2016.

  Aftermath

  The new owner initiated renovations and pursued conversion to DoubleTree by Hilton.

  Source

• 2016

  Plan conversion to DoubleTree by HiltonStrategy

  Background

  Visions Hotels sought to modernize the property and connect it to a larger international hotel distribution and operating system.

  Action taken

  Visions secured an agreement with Hilton Worldwide for a property-improvement plan and began renovation work in fall 2016.

  Aftermath

  The property reopened in October 2017 as DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Utica.

  Source

• 2006

  Join Choice Hotels InternationalStrategy

  Background

  After its early-2000s restoration, the independently owned hotel sought chain affiliation while retaining private ownership.

  Action taken

  Hotel Utica became a Choice Hotels International franchise.

  Aftermath

  The affiliation preceded a later ownership change and rebranding under Hilton’s DoubleTree system.

  Source

1. 1Hotel Uticaen.wikipedia.org