e North Mountain Avenue estate
was built back in 1902 as a residential
home for the famous architect Charles
Van Vleck—who also served as the
exclusive architect to the esteemed
Rockefeller family. e property got its
first feel for hotel life as e Georgian
Inn during the 1940s (named for its
Georgian architecture), but the site was
later granted landmark status in 2008.
at is, until Ploer purchased it in
2012. e renovations didn't begin until
nearly four years later, when Brown was
brought on board.
"Let me put it this way, every single
thing had to be changed," Brown said
with a laugh. While it's hard to tell
from its stately brick façade, as far as
the interior was concerned, it needed a head-to-toe revamp.
Fortunately, they were able to restore the hotel's original lobby
and wood-paneled library which Brown believes sets the tone
right from the start. "e bones of the library were absolutely
gorgeous. It had a fireplace, bookshelves, paneled walls—but
the colors were really bad. It was neglected. So we stripped it
and then we looked at it and said, 'Ok it's cool, but lets stain it.'
So we landed on dark gray which I think came out really, really
nice." e lobby features original ornate crown moldings and
stark white columns that speak to its colonial beginnings.
V U E N J . C O M
68
DESIGN
