For those who've seen the shrouded building at the corner of Selma and Wilcox and wondered what's coming, the short answer is that the 1920s-era structure will be part of the intense upcoming hotel boom in Hollywood. But this won't be just any Holiday Inn: it is currently in the process of becoming the nation's first outpost of the super-chic Mama Shelter brand. The chain (which has four of its five current locations in France) mixes interiors by king of the chic hotel designers, Philippe Starck, with affordable rates (starting around $150 a night) and is looking at a February opening, says Hotel Chatter.
Planning documents show that the nation's first Mama Shelter is aiming to turn its five-story building into a 76-room hostelry with restaurants on the ground floor and the roof, all topped with a nice big rooftop sign.
Beyond that, it's not yet clear exactly what to expect. Reps for Mama Shelter would only confirm the February opening date, though Mama Shelter developer Benjamin Trigano had said in an interview with C magazine that he envisions the hotel as an "urban kibbutz," which he explains in another interview, with LA Confidential, is a reference to the hotel's broad appeal, its affordability, and its stylish design. Later in the interview, though, he also says that "If Château Marmont had a baby, this would be it." It's a challenge to imagine that there's much crossover between a kibbutz and the Château, but maybe it'll become a lot more clear in February.
Meanwhile, Hollywood's hotel fever has reached incredible highs. There's a hotel in the works at the other end of the block, the Dream Hotel on the other side of Wilcox and Selma, a hotel a block over at Cahuenga and Sunset, and a possibility that the Jack In The Box site at Sunset and Ivar could be going hotel too.
· Here's Hoping We Can Seek Mama Shelter in Los Angeles in February [Hotel Chatter]
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