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February 4, 2005
 
Hankins, Muriale Plan Restoration of Frederick Hotel with Bar, Restaurant, Catering
Stone & Thomas Building Could be Reborn with Retail, Condo Mix
 
by Tony Rutherford
Huntington News Network Writer
 
Huntington (HNN) — Dormant, for the most part, for 25 years, the largest hotel built in West Virginia will soon awaken from its slumber.
 
John Hankins of Landmark Properties, has teamed with the area’s preeminent restaurateur, Rocco Muriale, on what Hankins called a “super first class” project at the Frederick Hotel. He declined to reveal any monetary amounts.
 
The initial phase will see the opening of a bar/restaurant in the space formerly occupied by Tapia’s. Muriale will operate a catering and wedding reception business from the former hotel. Two “Gone With the Wind” staircases which have been partially covered will be restored to their original 1906 state. Some rooms will be available in a “package deal” for out-of-town wedding guests.
 
Although many of the building’s rooms have been used for offices or apartments, some of the rooms remain untouched since the hotel shut down in 1972. The 5,000 square foot “presidential suite,” which turned into a luxury apartment for the Stewart family in 1962 has only been occasionally used and remains virtually untouched since the death of family members. Hankins called the room with a 1962 kitchen in baby blue a “35-year time warp.” The suite still contains original furnishing purchased from Cincinnati’s upscale designer and decorator store, Closson’s.
 
HNN will bring you pictures from inside the “time warp” portion of the Frederick. Watch for them in the next few days.
 
Meanwhile, HNN has learned that one likely use of the Stone and Thomas Building, which sets opposite Pullman Square, will be retail on the first floor and apartments or condos on the upper stories. Hankins cautioned that “lots of ideas are being worked on,” but Pullman Square models included re-use of the buildings on the south side of Third Avenue. The six-story former Anderson-Newcomb site has figured prominently due to its location at the entrance to Pullman.
 
Actually, the downtown historic property owner added, “I’d like to [someday] see 700 families living in downtown Huntington.” A thriving community of upscale and mid-level apartment and condo developments tend to accompany successful revitalizations of historic downtowns.
 
Instrumental from the beginning at securing federal funding for Pullman Square, Hankins stated he is pleased with the “super high quality executed [by the developers] at Pullman Square. They could have done it less expensively, but they stuck to the high end.”
 
While Pullman Square’s opening has served as a catalyst for the Frederick project, he does not believe the success of either development will be closely tied to the other. Though only a few businesses are open, Hankins predicted that “it will do well” and be an essential part of Huntington’s downtown scene, even if it hits a few bumps along the way.