Elliot Park Hotel, Autograph Collection

Elliot Park Hotel, Autograph Collection opened in October 2018 in Minneapolis, at 5th Avenue and 9th Street. It is eight stories and 115,000 square feet, with 155 rooms and 13 suites, 168 keys in the group's count.

The place

The hotel stands in Elliot Park, one of the oldest residential districts of Minneapolis, about five blocks from the downtown core and five blocks from U.S. Bank Stadium. The site sits at 5th Avenue and 9th Street.

Next door is Finnegans Brew Co., a craft brewery with a lively bar and an outdoor patio. The hotel kitchen also supplies food for events held at the brewery.

The hotel belongs to a larger block redevelopment: Kraus-Anderson's new corporate headquarters, a 17-story apartment tower, the brewery, shared outdoor areas and underground parking. The convention center and U.S. Bank Stadium are the nearest event venues.

The concept

Wilkinson Development closed on the site in June 2017 and broke ground that August. Kraus-Anderson built the eight-story, 115,000-square-foot hotel to a design by ESG Architects, and Coury Hospitality operates it. The project cost was estimated at $50 million. It is the last phase of a Kraus-Anderson redevelopment of a downtown block that also holds the company's headquarters, an apartment building and the Finnegans brewery.

The interior follows the Danish idea of hygge, which echoes the city's Scandinavian roots. In practice that means a heated lobby floor, a wall of candles, copper accents and textured fabrics. Marriott's own description calls the result a chic, urban take on Minnesota hospitality.

There are 155 rooms and 13 suites, plus a penthouse. The hotel allows pets. The street-level retail space sells local art and candles made in Eden Prairie, and the welcome offering, called the brew and the bite, pairs a food sample with a Finnegans beer.

The brand identity was created by Company B, a branding agency approved by Marriott for Autograph Collection. Wilkinson Development is the Washington-based subsidiary of Wilkinson Corporation, whose chief executive, Lonnie Gienger, called the project highly complex. Coury Hospitality, which runs a collection of Marriott-branded boutique hotels, was expanding from Oklahoma and Kansas into Minnesota and other states with this and four other Autograph projects.

Dining & wellness

Tavola is the hotel's 120-seat Italian restaurant, with an open oven for pizzas and breads. The menu runs to pastas, steaks and a modest wine list at prices meant to be approachable, and it serves breakfast, lunch and dinner. Room service is available. Residents of the neighborhood were offered 10 percent off at the opening.

The lobby also has a fireside lounge. Guests can use the Brewer's Den, a private social club at Finnegans next door.