Executives from Omni Hotels & Resorts along with Gov. Charlie Baker, Mayor Martin J. Walsh, the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport) and New Boston Hospitality began development on the Omni Boston Seaport Hotel.
Omni Hotels & Resorts, along with a team of local real estate professionals from New Boston Hospitality, were designated by Massport in 2017 to develop the hotel. Set to open in late 2020 on the two-acre parcel of Massport-owned land at the corner of Summer and D streets, the Omni Boston Seaport Hotel will be a catalyst to the development in the Seaport District. The hotel will include 1,055 guestrooms inclusive of 52 suites that will top out at 21 floors. Select suites will include views of the Boston Harbor. Other hotel highlights include:
- Food and beverage: The culinary experiences at Omni Boston Seaport Hotel will include an all-day restaurant and collaborative workspace, lobby lounge, entertainment lounge, French brasserie and boulangerie as well as an elevated pool bar and grill.
- Meetings and events: The hotel will house approximately 100,000 square feet of meeting and event space that includes the largest hotel ballroom in Boston’s Seaport District, along with breakout rooms, outdoor and prefunction spaces.
- Lifestyle: Guests will have access to an urban rooftop pool deck located on the fourth floor. The pool deck will have an optional space that will allow guests to host year-round events and views of Boston’s skyline. In addition, guests can relax, unwind and beautify at the signature Mokara Spa that is complete with a fitness center and blow dry hair bar that will be available to hotel guests as well as locals via street access. The hotel will also have a curated retail shop with items from local purveyors.
“This is more than just a groundbreaking, it’s a celebration of the diversity and inclusion this project represents from its design, to its contracting, to its nonprofit partners,” Walsh said in a statement. “The Omni Boston Seaport Hotel is a welcome addition to our city, providing better public access to the waterfront, improving walkability to the area and investing in our workforce. I look forward to seeing the vision for this hotel come to life, for the benefit of Boston’s residents and visitors alike.”
“Boston is a premier destination and we are incredibly excited to be a part of the city’s continued evolution—especially in the Seaport District,” Peter Strebel, president of Omni Hotels & Resorts, said in a statement. “We look forward to working together with Massport, New Boston Hospitality, Governor Baker and Mayor Walsh to establish the Omni Boston Seaport Hotel as an unforgettable destination for years to come.”
In addition, six local nonprofit organizations will receive a portion of the hotel’s profits, including The Edgerley Family South Boston Clubhouse of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Boston, The South Boston Community Health Center, Julie’s Family Learning Center, Ladies Involved in Putting a Stop To Inner-City Killing and The Daniel Marr Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester and the Building Pathways Program, a pre-apprenticeship program that provides construction career opportunities to low-income Boston residents.
The $550-million project is estimated to create 1,100 construction jobs and between 700 and 1,000 permanent jobs.
“This is a multifaceted groundbreaking,” Brian Fallon, president of TDC Development Group, a division of The Davis Companies, said in a statement. “It’s an unprecedented project that will transform South Boston’s already thriving convention and tourism business by adding over 1,000 hotel rooms and provide a professional hospitality training institute to support industry career growth. We also hope that it will set a precedent for minority and women-owned business enterprise participation in real estate development.”
The Omni Boston Seaport Hotel will become a part of Omni’s Convention Center Collection, which includes properties in Atlanta, Louisville, Dallas, Fort Worth and Nashville. Upon opening, it will be the largest hotel in Omni’s portfolio and the fourth-largest hotel in Boston.