The city of Aiken has contracted Colliers to sell Hotel Aiken and nearby parcels through a public request for proposals, aiming, the municipality said in a news release, to meet the city’s evolving needs.
The city engaged Tommy Tapp and Alia Bostaji from Colliers South Carolina along with Mark Owens from Colliers’ U.S. Hospitality Practice Group.
“The city’s goal is to revitalize a vital part of its historic downtown area to address increasing housing and hospitality demands while preserving Aiken’s local identity,” Aiken Mayor Teddy Milner said in the news release. “The availability of the Hotel Aiken and neighboring parcels offers an exciting opportunity for developers to contribute to Aiken’s ongoing growth and prosperity, and we look forward to determining the best possible future for this important corner of Aiken’s vibrant downtown.”
For 125 years, Hotel Aiken has been a prominent feature of downtown Aiken. It anchors and dominates one end of the most significant commercial block of the city of Aiken along Laurens Street between Park Avenue and Richland Avenue. It is not currently operating as a hotel, according to Colliers.
The offering includes redevelopment opportunities for a 28,406-square-foot historical hotel site and 34,313 square feet of additional retail space on 1.36 acres. These parcels are located along Richland Avenue between the main thoroughfares of Newberry Street and Laurens Street, about four miles from the USC Aiken campus and within walking distance of Aiken’s top food, shopping and entertainment hotspots.
“The city of Aiken is pleased to partner with Colliers on this critical downtown revitalization project,” Aiken City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh said in the release. “We are confident that Colliers will help the city identify the right buyer for these properties and will preserve their historic value while updating with modern amenities to benefit our citizens, businesses and visitors.”
The hotel also stands to benefit from annual tourism attracted by the Augusta National Golf Club, where the Masters Tournament takes place less than 20 miles away. The city purchased Hotel Aiken and the adjacent parcels in 2021 to achieve various strategic goals, such as restoring unused historical sites and enhancing their appeal for the growing population as well as tourism, the release said.
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