Vinoy Park Hotel

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Vinoy Park Hotel
Location St. Petersburg, Florida
Coordinates 27°46′41.24″N 82°37′48.34″W / 27.7781222°N 82.6300944°W / 27.7781222; -82.6300944Coordinates: 27°46′41.24″N 82°37′48.34″W / 27.7781222°N 82.6300944°W / 27.7781222; -82.6300944
Built 1925[1]
Architect

Henry L. Taylor[1][2][3][4]

Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club is a member of Historic Hotels of America, the official program of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.[5]
Architectural style Mediterranean Revival[1][2][3][4]
Governing body Private
NRHP Reference # 78000955
Added to NRHP September 11, 1978
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The Vinoy Park Hotel (also known as the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club) is a historic Mediterranean Revival styled hotel in downtown St. Petersburg, Florida. It is located at 501 Fifth Avenue Northeast. On September 11, 1978, it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. On April 18, 2012, the AIA's Florida Chapter placed it on its list of Florida Architecture: 100 Years. 100 Places.[6]

History

The Vinoy was built in 1925 by Aymer Vinoy Laughner. Construction began on February 5 and took 10 months to complete. The hotel was a seasonal hotel open from around December to March. Rates were $20.00 a night, the highest in the area at that time. The hotel was a popular destination for celebrities ranging from Babe Ruth, Herbert Hoover, Calvin Coolidge and James Stewart.

During World War II the hotel was taken over by the U.S. Army and used for a training school. The hotel was sold to Charles Alberding after the war for $700,000. The hotel continued to prosper for the next couple decades. In 1974 the Vinoy closed its doors and sold most of its contents. The hotel became a haven for vagrants until the early 1990s when it was bought by a partnership between Renaissance Hotels and Resorts and the Vinoy Development Corporation. A $93-million renovation was undertaken, and in two years the Vinoy reopened as an almost perfect replica of its former self.

In 2005, the Vinoy earned AAA Four-Diamond status.[7]

Over the years, there have been numerous reports of allegedly supernatural events occurring at the hotel, especially from visiting major league baseball players and staff, who often stay at the Vinoy when in town to play the Tampa Bay Rays[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 "Urban Design & Historic Preservation Division: Local Historic Landmarks - The Vinoy Park Hotel". City of St. Petersburg. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Renaissance Vinoy Resort". Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Pinellas County listings". Florida's Office of Cultural and Historical Programs. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club - St. Petersburg, Florida". Historic Hotels of America. 
  5. ↑ Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club a Historic Hotels of America member. Historic Hotels of America. Retrieved January 28, 2014. 
  6. ↑ "AIA Florida Top 100 Buildings". Aiaflatop100.org. Retrieved 2013-12-04. 
  7. ↑ "Renaissance Tampa Hotel earns AAA four diamond honor - Tampa Bay Business Journal". Bizjournals.com. 2005-04-25. Retrieved 2013-12-04. 
  8. ↑

External links


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