The Waters Hotel expected to open mid-February

The Waters Hotel, located in the former Thompson Building in downtown Hot Springs, should be open for business in mid-February, one of the owners said Wednesday.

Hot Springs National Park Rotary Club hosted Robert Zunick, along with Casey Copeland, the hotel's executive chef, and Chris Wolcott, the hotel's general manager, at its weekly meeting at the Arlington Resort Hotel & Spa on Wednesday.

Construction of the $8 million, 62-room boutique hotel began in late October 2015, and Zunick said it has taken longer than expected.

"I had no idea when we started this how long it takes to build a hotel or to remodel a 100-year-old building," he said. "It took nine months to negotiate the sale. Once we owned the Thompson Building, it took 16 months to close the financing, and we're 15 months in on the construction now."

After shuffling through more than a hundred potential hotel names, Zunick and his partners settled on The Waters Hotel.

"We went through Indian names, we went through our forefathers and city fathers and we really wanted to settle it on the essence of what really ties everything together, the reason all those people came to Hot Springs in the first place, and all this kind of boils down to one thing: the waters, the waters that we have been blessed with here in the national park," he added.

A similar thought process was used in the naming of the hotel's restaurant, The Avenue, which pays tribute to Central Avenue and its rich history.

"I eat, sleep and breathe food," said Copeland. "We want to work with the community and local artisans and local farmers and bring Hot Springs something that I don't think is here, a whole brand-new dining experience. I show love to all farmers, that being said because a lot of people mass produce and they get a lot of buyout stuff and it puts a lot of harmful stuff in your body. We're non-GMO, so no pesticides or preservatives."

The restaurant will feature a bar with an aquaponic station where fresh herbs will be grown for cocktails and to add to the ambience of the environment.

The Thompson Building was constructed in 1913 and has been home to doctors' offices, apartments, a hotel and other small businesses. During its remodel, Zunick said, an old receipt from 1949 from a couple who stayed at the Thompson Hotel was discovered inside of a wall. "They spent two nights at the Thompson Hotel for $16 a night. We're going to be a little bit higher than that," he said.

An outdoor garden area will be available to guests of the hotel and a rooftop bar looking out over Central Avenue is expected to open for business approximately six or seven months after the hotel's opening week.

Wolcott said that three different room types will be offered at The Waters Hotel, adding, "the very unique thing is that not a single one of them is like the other. We have different sizes, we have different layouts, we have different rich history from exposed brick walls and bench seat windows that all bring the history and tie everything in as far as the building is concerned."

A small conference space will also be available inside the hotel for small meetings or groups.

"An added benefit that we have to enhance the experience is that not only with your room reservation will you stay in the hotel, but you can create a package and enjoy Quapaw Baths & Spa, which is across the street from us, and then you're also able to return back to the hotel to what is called Blushed Beauty Boutique, and that is a boutique shop that will highlight cosmetics and it'll be something very good for some of our groups that are coming in," Wolcott said. "If we look at wedding groups, they'll be able to actually go up to the room, assist the wedding party in getting things situated, their makeup done."

The Waters Hotel has created from 35 to 40 full- and part-time job opportunities in Hot Springs, and Wolcott said hiring the right people was "absolutely crucial for the experience and the success of the hotel."

Local on 01/26/2017

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