An "edgy" and "irreverent" 94-room boutique hotel paying homage to the Fenway's musical and artistic history will replace the shuttered and past-its-prime Howard Johnson Inn.
Samuels & Associates plans to open The Verb this summer after an $18.8 million-plus redevelopment that will include an interior gut-renovation of the Boylston Street property while preserving the 1959 building's mid-century facade and architecture.
It will be the first hotel for Samuels, which is credited with breathing new life into the Fenway with numerous residential, retail and office projects, including Fenway Triangle Trilogy, 1330 Boylston St. and the Van Ness Building. For this development, it is partnering with Weiner Ventures and Spot-On Ventures, developers of the Mandarin Oriental Boston.
"We're completely refurbishing the entire building," said Spot-On principal Robin Brown, a former 13-year general manager of the Four Seasons Hotel Boston. "It was a very high-quality building that lacked in love. We're more than tipping our hat to the original architects' design intent, making it authentic, but modern."
The team hired a London branding firm to brainstorm about the hotel's positioning, its style of service and attitude, and its name.
"Everything about the hotel will be a little bit irreverent," Brown said. "This is like me having a midlife crisis of hotels that's grounded with superb service and superb details, nailed with a huge sense of humor. This is not going to be a serious hotel."
The hotel's lobby will include a DJ spinning vinyl albums that will be on display. Boston music and pop-culture memorabilia ranging from historic Boston Phoenix covers to photos of musicians who performed in Boston or appeared on WFNX-FM radio also will decorate the public spaces.
"Once we really got to know the building, we saw that (it) really had great bones," said Leslie Cohen, Samuels' executive vice president of development. "We thought this was a great opportunity to create a spectacular new product in short order. Hotel rooms are in high demand."
Room rates are expected to start in the $200 range.
The hotel will include a heated outdoor pool and deck, along with a 4,000-square-foot, three-meal restaurant and bar.
"We're looking for (a chef) that fits in with the vibe of the Fenway — someone who is up-and-coming and consistent with our restaurateurs," Cohen said.
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