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In October 1997, as Marina City laid to rest its parent, Bertrand Goldberg, the rebirth of the “city within a city” was underway.
There had been two minor fires in the still-vacant office building. Workers with blowtorches caused the last one – on the day before Goldberg died – but otherwise the renovation was moving along.
The office building was being gutted in preparation for a new House of Blues hotel, to complement the House of Blues concert venue that had been in business at Marina City for about a year.
(Left) House of Blues Hotel as seen from the northwest in 2006.
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On January 28, 1998, it was reported that AMF Bowling Inc. would build a $5 million, 40,000 square foot, 32 lane bowling center on the lower level of the former office building. It would later be scaled down to 24 lanes.
It was not until February 26, 1998 – more than two years after plans for the hotel were announced – that a company was selected to operate the hotel. Chosen was Loews Hotels, a chain of 14 hotels based in New York. In Chicago, Loews had owned and operated the Ambassador East and Ambassador West hotels from 1965 to 1972.
(Right) East side of Marina City, circa 1998, from across State Street.
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Guided by an award-winning interior designer, Cheryl Rowley, the hotel would integrate styles from Morocco, East Indies, and New Orleans. Still, Jeff Lapin, president of House of Blues Hospitality, did not want to call it a “themed” hotel, a concept that was starting to emerge in the late 1990s.
“The problem with themes is that they go out of fashion,” he told the Chicago Tribune.
(Left) Lapin, who at one time was a lawyer in Los Angeles, would go on to be CEO of Atari, S.A.
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Other hotel deals were being made nearby in 1998. Hotel Allegro was scheduled to open in March on West Randolph Street. Oxford House would soon be transformed into the Hotel Monaco on North Wabash Avenue.
Originally, the House of Blues hotel was planned as a low-end place for younger visitors to the blues club. Over time, House of Blues Hospitality, a subsidiary of Nomura Asset Capital Corporation, decided they wanted to attract a broader clientele, including business travelers.
The 372-room House of Blues hotel would open in October 1998.
(Right) A large, gold Tibetan Buddha that sat peacefully just inside the hotel’s front doors. (Photo by Chris Trylong.)
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