A building that has stood in Los Angeles for nearly a century is welcoming visitors in an entirely new way after an extensive restoration.
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that → stand → restoration
The former Bethany Presbyterian Church, built in 1931 in the city's Silver Lake neighborhood, has been converted into Hotel Lucile, a 25-room boutique hotel with a courtyard cocktail pool that opened Sept. 14, according to a hotel news release shared with Fox News Digital.
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that → build → Digital
The property has taken on several roles over the decades.
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property → take → decades
After operating as a church, it was later used as a theater and an antique market before being converted into a hotel, according to the release.
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it → operate → release
The latest transformation was about seven and a half years in the making, Anthony Gutierrez, opening general manager of Hotel Lucile, told Fox News Digital.
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Gutierrez → open → Digital
The restoration focused on finding a new use for the building while maintaining elements that date to its time as a house of worship, Gutierrez said.
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Gutierrez → focus → worship
Many of the church's original features remain throughout the property, including stained-glass windows, wooden beams, high ceilings and steel-framed windows.
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Many → remain → windows
One of the biggest transformations took place inside the former chapel, which now serves as the hotel's restaurant and dining room.
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which → take → restaurant
"Literally just about every aspect of the chapel itself was preserved," Gutierrez said, pointing to the original wood flooring, beams and stained-glass windows.
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Gutierrez → preserve → flooring
Preserving those features while preparing the building for its new use required extensive work, Gutierrez said.
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Gutierrez → preserve → work
Crews removed the chapel's original wood flooring to install modern electrical and plumbing systems and add soundproofing for the guest rooms before putting the flooring back into place.
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Crews → remove → place
"For the dining room itself, it is as original as it can be," he said, estimating that about 90% of the space remains original.
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% → say → space
Working with a building approaching 100 years old also presented challenges throughout the years-long redevelopment.
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Working → work → redevelopment
"We had surprises up until the day when we received our certificate of occupancy," Gutierrez said.
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Gutierrez → have → occupancy
"
Meeting modern requirements while trying to preserve the building's original architectural elements made parts of the restoration a "painstaking" process, he added.
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he → meet → restoration
The building's latest chapter also includes an art collection, with two large hand-painted murals in the former chapel and other works displayed throughout the property.
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chapter → include → property
Some pieces are part of a permanent collection, while others are available for purchase, Gutierrez said.
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Gutierrez → say → purchase
Along with preserving elements of the former church, the property has introduced modern touches, including an Erewhon-curated minibar and a roving martini cart that makes its rounds each evening, according to the release.
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that → preserve → release
Gutierrez said the combination of old and new can offer travelers something different from a traditional hotel experience.
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combination → say → experience
"There is some comfort in things being the same, but taking even a small risk of just going somewhere different and experiencing something different can really bring kind of a highlight to a trip or even a staycation," he said.
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he → be → trip
The Aporia
