The former Portland Press Herald building, located in the Maine city’s Old Port district, had been sitting vacant since the state’s largest daily newspaper relocated to One City Center in 2010. Local developer Jim Brady envisioned converting the building, founded in 1923, into an independent, boutique hotel in the district’s emerging cultural center.
To create a new hospitality experience for travelers seeking an authentic feel, Brady enlisted New York-based design firm Stonehill & Taylor to transform the former newspaper office building into The Press Hotel, a member of Autograph Collection. The firm planned an interior design that would celebrate Portland’s history and the building’s past for the hotel, which reopened in May following renovations.
“Throughout the property, overall nods to the journalistic and publishing history allow guests to experience the writer’s trade in a sincere way,” said Michael Suomi, principal and VP of design, Stonehill & Taylor. “Our design team worked with the editors at the newspaper to pull content out of the archives from its 150-year history to bring authenticity to the hotel experience.”
From the color scheme to the overall design concept, the contemporary aesthetic of the hotel’s public spaces and 110 guestrooms aim to convey an urban sophistication while celebrating the building’s history as a printing press, according to Stonehill & Taylor, which selected content from the newspaper’s pages that were weaved into the design of hotel.
In the lobby, lounge tables feature newspaper headlines from the Press Herald that span the last 150 years. On the wall behind the reception desk, a large-scale art piece made of painted type letters adds pops of color to the space. The lobby also includes a reference to the city’s port and shipbuilding trade. The reception desk features a ribbed design carved into the front, recalling the skeleton of a ship.
Situated downstairs, meeting rooms resemble private residential libraries with custom carpeting that highlights a different element from the production of a newspaper. The guestroom corridors showcase newsprint-inspired wallcoverings with actual headlines from the Press Herald. Built into the original basement floor is a scale, originally used to weigh newspapers, repurposed as an art installation in the fitness center.
Inspired by a 1920s writer’s office, the guestroom design showcases several historical references, such as vintage-style writer’s desk and a newspaper rack hanging current copies of periodicals. The back of the leather office chair is embroidered with the classic phrase that contains every letter of the alphabet: “The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.” The bathroom entrance features a reeded glass door fashioned similar to those in old editor’s offices.
Throughout the property, natural gray, dark blacks and deep navy tones dominate the color palette with pops of bright accents, explained Suomi. “We selected the hotel’s inky color scheme to act as a reference to newsprint,” he added. “In addition, the high-contrast finishes in the public areas, very darks and whites, is in homage to the newsprint itself.”
In keeping with the inspiration, many of the selected materials evoke a historic newspaper building, according to Suomi. “The fabrics, a deep navy, resemble the color of ink as an accent,” he said. “The area rugs were inspired by spilt ink patterns and abstract typewriter keys. Materials also tie to the region. The marble used in the guest bathroom counters and the reception desk is from a quarry in Vermont.”
Stonehill & Taylor sought to balance the historical significance of the building with contemporary designs that today’s guests would expect from a lifestyle, boutique hotel. The firm combined original architectural elements like the coffered ceiling, historic entrance and the height of expansive windows with a neutral greige wall color and warm wood finishes, creating a more modern look.
The Inkwell, the hotel’s lobby bar, displays an industrial vibe contrasted by the use of warm wood finishes and incandescent lighting. The high expansive windows are strategically matched with the elevated seating at the bar to open up street views to guests and patrons. Surrounded by lounge seating, the fireplace at the bar is featured as a primary focal point of the space.
In addition to paying homage to the building’s history, The Press Hotel serves as a showcase for Portland’s emerging art scene. The lobby lounges, meeting rooms, guestrooms and a dedicated art gallery all showcase art from local artists. Stonehill & Taylor toured local galleries and studios to find the best representation of Portland’s artistic talent.
Committed to keeping its environmental impact to a minimum, the historic, adaptive-reuse project features sustainable building elements. In October, the hotel earned a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification by the U.S. Green Building Council.
The hotel’s sustainable features include dual-flush toilets; operable windows; high-performance mechanical systems; building automation systems to control and monitor lighting and equipment; environmentally conscious building materials; and green operating policies to maintain a healthy environment while the building is occupied.
“Sustainability discussions were an integral part of the design and construction process,” said Gunnar Hubbard, FAIA, LEED Fellow, and principal and sustainability practice leader at Thornton Tomasetti, an engineering design firm. “As a result, The Press Hotel is a great example of a project that prioritized sustainability while maintaining the respect for historic integrity, and balanced cost implications while meeting the long-term goals for occupant health and energy efficiency.”