WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — A demolition underway in downtown Wilkes-Barre is making way for something new.
An old jewelry store on South Main Street is coming down to make way for a five-story boutique hotel and retail space.
The mayor was joined by real estate developers on Monday to cut the ribbon and begin work on the latest addition to the downtown.
"It's a boutique hotel; it's a 102-room property. Basically, the first floor will be retails, and it's a new building," said Hitesh Patel of Sphere International.
"We're excited," said attorney Jack Dean. "I've been in Wilkes-Barre over the weekend, and I've been talking to people who work downtown. Everybody's excited about this project."
"We have a lot to offer. We have the new sign, our square we have a beautiful park; it all meshes together," Dominic D'Agostino said.
"Who will our customers be? We did a market study. We have King's (College) and Wilkes (University) downtown, parents, visitors to Wilkes-Barre, we have Wilkes-Barre downtown," Dean said.
People involved with the project tell Newswatch 16 they hope this new boutique hotel will help continue the revitalization of Wilkes-Barre despite the pandemic.
"Taking the pandemic out of the picture for a second, in a perfect world, this is where they want to be," Dean added.
"As a community, I think it's a good investment. I think we'll make money with the college kids, you know they'll be coming there, it's original, we don't have a lot of that, so it brings a little class to the town," said D'Agostino.
People with the project say the demolition will take several weeks and then construction another 14 to 18 months, so we're looking at maybe a spring 2022 opening in downtown Wilkes-Barre.