Construction of a restaurant on the roof of the Yorktowne Hotel, updating the facade
Yorktowne Hotel’s renovations are starting to shine on the outside as the Graham Rooftop Lounge takes shape overlooking the city from an upper floor. Facade work is expected to begin soon along East Market Street.
Over the past two weeks, a system of raised deck pavers from the roof has been completed. This will serve as the exterior flooring for the rooftop lounge, according to Kim Hogeman, director of strategic development for the York County Industrial Development Authority.
An existing roof structure was extended with masonry, blending the new with the old. Elevator service will reach the roof for the first time as well as new stair access. When complete, the rooftop event venue will have a capacity of 150 people outdoors and 50 indoors, Hogeman said.
Back on the first floor, the renovation of the ballroom ceiling is almost complete. Scaffolding, which had been in place for months to gain access to the ceiling, will be removed and work can begin to remove paint from the glass of the large ballroom windows and restore them, Hogeman added.
Recently, a worker was busy polishing parts of Cutler’s iconic brass mail chute system before they were reinstalled during the refurbishment. The system of brass slots and brass-framed glass chutes collected mail dropped off from the upper guest floors in the Yorktowne lobby.
The restoration process was exhaustive. Historical details must be approved by the National Park Service and also by Hilton. “Every section that has an ornate feature, we do a test section to make sure everyone likes it, and then we move on. That way we don’t have to go back and redo everything,” said Hogeman said.
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The next major visual changes the public will see are the restoration of the East Market Street and South Duke Street facades. Patio doors with sidelights will replace the bricked-up doors along the street. Hogeman described that the bumps on East Market and South Duke will be removed to be replaced with the same door treatment. The stripped capital will be restored.
According to Hogeman, most of the pieces to be finished are in place for exterior work, and the construction team is waiting for the stone trim to arrive before work can begin.
The facade of the new main entrance at the rear of the hotel should also begin to take shape.
Hogeman said the entire project will be completed this fall. “I’m confident. I planted my line in the sand. Her expectations are self-interested as she booked her own wedding at the hotel in October. ‘And I’m not going to have my wedding in the parking lot.’
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