Americus Hotel to open in spring
Work continues on renovating historical landmark downtown
The long-anticipated reopening of the Americus Hotel has been delayed a few more months because of the resurgent COVID-19 pandemic, but owner Albert Abdouche is ready to show off restorations made to the downtown historical landmark over the last decade.
Abdouche says the 93-yearold hotel at Sixth and Hamilton streets will begin offering 80 rooms for overnight stays as early as April, depending on the trajectory of the pandemic. A grand opening will be held this summer.
The nearly completed rooms are on the second through fifth floors of the hotel. Abdouche continues to redevelop the upper five floors into 48 extended-stay rooms and four luxury apartments. He hopes to complete this work by the end of 2021.
The Americus will begin hiring as many as 75 full-time employees in February, and will prioritize applicants first from the city, and then the Lehigh Valley.
The Americus has joined Wyndham Hotel Group’s Trade
“Once you walk in, you’re going to be immersed by not just the history of the hotel, but the history of the Lehigh Valley.” — Ryan Abdouche, son of Americus Hotel owner Albert Abdouche
mark Collection. According to the franchise, Trademark is a “soft brand” designed for independent hoteliers operating landmark, three- or four-star hotels looking to take advantage of Wyndham’s “scale, distribution, services and loyalty program.” The Americus will be the first Trademark Hotel in Pennsylvania.
Marshall Hotels & Resorts will manage the Americus, and Paul T. Sharp has been hired as general manager. Sharp previously served as director of sales and marketing at the Renaissance Allentown.
Sharp, Abdouche and his son, Ryan, on Monday showed off the considerable work they’ve put into restoring the building over the last decade. The lobby features the hotel’s original glass chandelier and an intricately painted ceiling that artists spent three months restoring. Near the hotel’s entrance, murals pay tribute to the famous Hess Department Store and the Hamilton Street landscape from a bygone era.
“When old school comes back to life, it is a treat,” said Sharp, who joined the Americus in August.
Smaller, restored chandeliers illuminate a 65-seat restaurant overlooking North Sixth Street. The restaurant will serve three meals a day and also features a bar. Abdouche hopes to open the restaurant, which will be handled in-house, at the same time as the rooms, depending on the state of the pandemic. The menu will hark back to the original menu from when the hotel opened in the 1920s.
New floor-to-ceiling glass partisans separate the lobby and restaurant from a nearly completed ballroom that will host weddings, conferences and other events of up to 300 people. Eventually, the top floor of the hotel will feature a second banquet facility.
Every piece of artwork in the hotel is custom-made, Ryan Abdouche said, and each floor will feature a different theme highlighting Lehigh Valleygrown businesses, such as C.F. Martin & Co. and Mack Trucks.
“Once you walk in, you’re going to be immersed by not just the history of the hotel, but the history of the Lehigh Valley,” he said.
Among other amenities, the hotel will feature a sun deck above North Sixth Street and Court Street complete with a cocktail lounge and a stage for musical acts.
Hotel rooms will cost $140$200 per night during peak season, and less during the winter months. Of the 80 rooms soon to be available, 25 are suites.
The five 1,800-square-foot apartments on the building’s
10th floor will cost approximately $1,500 per month.
The hotel will offer valet service to one of the nearby parking decks.
Abdouche secured NIZ financing in early 2018 after landing a $9 million construction loan from First Keystone Community Bank. He was also awarded a $1.5 million grant through Pennsylvania’s Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program. The total project cost is expected to approach $20 million.
It’s a daunting time to open a hotel, but Sharp is “cautiously optimistic” given the Lehigh Valley market’s tendency to outperform other regions in terms of occupancy rates. The hotel’s draw as a historical destination, he said, should also help.
Abdouche said his family’s experience running the Palace Banquet and Conference Center in East Allentown has primed them for success.
“The Americus is coming back to life, and we think Allentown will be proud of it,” he said. “We just need to get past this pandemic.”