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Design review board approves Hotel Aiken revitalization package and associated demolitions to enable downtown parking garage
Summary
The DRB unanimously approved a multi-faceted package to restore the Hotel Aiken, construct a three-story mixed-use building, demolish noncontributing structures (including Wernicke Cleaners and a motel), and build a new parking garage with street-level retail, after presentations and public comment about preservation vs. feasibility and contamination.
After an extended presentation and public comment period on June 2, the Aiken Design Review Board unanimously approved a multi-part redevelopment plan centered on the Hotel Aiken parcel and adjacent blocks. The applicant team (Garvin Design Group) presented revised plans for a renovated Hotel Aiken with a three-story addition, a mixed-use building on B Lane, and a new 200-space parking garage on Newberry Street featuring ground-level retail and pedestrian-friendly treatments that echo nearby historic storefront details.
The application package included three separate certificates: (1) demolition of the Wernicke Cleaners building at 113 Newberry Street (CERD26-001085), (2) demolition of the Holly House motel at 112 B Lane, and (3) rehabilitation and additions to the Hotel Aiken and partial rear demolition of the McGee Block to accommodate the garage and new construction. Garvin Design Group representatives (Scott Garvin, Meg Sims, Britney Tuck, Andrew Rogerson) described material palettes, revised storefront proportions, fenestration changes, and a green-wall treatment on a primary Newberry façade intended to reduce visual massing.
Historic Aiken Foundation (Linda Johnson, speaker 15) voiced qualified support, arguing the comprehensive project would preserve high-value historic properties such as the Hotel Aiken while noting the Secretary of the Interior’s standards discourage demolition except where remediation or feasibility demands it. Johnson emphasized that contamination at the Wernicke site (dry-cleaning operations) complicates feasible rehabilitation and that the garage location enables preservation of other downtown assets. A tenant representative (Alok Kumar Aksi, speaker 14) asked about impacts to an operating restaurant (Tajikhan) and lease questions; staff said lease and scheduling issues are municipal matters outside the DRB’s design review authority.
After public comment and further board discussion, members moved and seconded separate motions to approve the Wernicke Cleaners demolition, the Holly House motel demolition, and the broader rehabilitation/addition and garage package; each motion passed unanimously. Board members thanked the applicants for responding to earlier public comments and emphasized that the project aims to balance preservation of key facades with necessary new construction to support downtown uses and events.
Next steps: the approvals allow the applicant to proceed with more detailed permit submittals, coordinate remediation and construction staging with the city, and return to administrative processes for any material or color changes requiring administrative sign-off or separate approvals.
