The now 7-year-old downtown boutique hotel that metamorphosed from a historic YMCA building is nearing the end of a multi-million-dollar upgrade that includes a new outdoor pool, reimagined lobby, curated art and a high-end restaurant with a global reputation.
The owner is hoping that the latest iteration of the 162-room Guild Hotel will transform it into more of an urban resort that will attract not only new guests but also locals who can stop by for a cocktail, gourmet dinner or a dip in the pool.
While the West Broadway property was positioned as a luxury hotel when it first opened in 2019, just before the pandemic, new improvements will raise the bar even higher, said Kevin Mansour, co-founder of Oram Hotels, parent company of the Guild Hotel and its sister property, the Granger, in the Gaslamp.
Zuma, which just opened in the Guild Hotel, is the global restaurant chain’s first West Coast location. (Zuma)
There are few spaces in the hotel that have remained untouched since its opening, from the lobby bar to the ballroom — once the YMCA’s basketball court — that has been transformed into the Zuma restaurant, part of a London-born contemporary Japanese restaurant chain that opened its first West Coast dining room in San Diego.
“It was beautiful before, yes, absolutely, but there was an opportunity to bring out the riches of the architecture of the building and the history even more,” Mansour said of the original $80 million project. “So, I think this does that. We wanted to incorporate more layers into the different areas of the hotel, and we wanted to warm it up a little bit, so you can linger. We want you to hang out and make this your living room of the community.”
Key among the reimagined Guild Hotel’s new additions is a yet-to-open pool that occupies an area that was previously a garden with olive trees and a terrace designed for events. The new pool, Mansour said, will be one of the few street-level pools in downtown San Diego.
“The guests were asking for it, so there was a demand for a great hotel pool in downtown,” Mansour said as he led a reporter on a tour of the Guild. “I feel like it’s an oasis in the city.”
A new outdoor swimming pool is under construction in the rear of the Guild Hotel in downtown San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Once the pool opens in the “coming weeks,” says Mansour, there will be a separate pool menu with cocktails and poolside bites.
Mansour declined to disclose the cost of the company’s investment in the redo, saying only that it’s substantial, amounting to several million dollars.
The overarching design goal of the latest renovation was to create distinct, identifiable spaces that customize the experience for the hotel guest, whether it’s checking in, browsing the hotel’s curated retail outlet or relaxing in the Lobby Bar, says Mansour. And the location of some of the separate areas was shifted to better highlight them, like the front desk, which is now adorned with imported Moroccan tile, and a small retail outlet.
“Previously, the space functioned primarily as circulation, with few places to pause or settle,” explains the New York-based design firm INC Architecture & Design. “The new plan establishes places for arrival, conversation, dining and quiet retreat through subtle shifts in scale, light, color and enclosure. Moving through the building becomes a progression between openness and intimacy, echoing the YMCA’s original role as both a social destination and a place of respite.
An example is the Lobby Bar, considered the heart of the hotel. Stained glass was added as an accent piece to the bar, and custom curtains were added to highlight the area as a separate space for gathering. Also coming soon is an existing bar rail that will be transformed into a piece of art by a wave of draped metal.
The newly redesigned bar with stained glass panels behind it can be seen through a custom, see-through curtain that can be closed to create a separate space. (Nelvin Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
Also new is a relocated lifestyle boutique that will feature curated books and art, fashion and selections of perfume, including custom scents developed for the Guild, Mansour said.
Just off the front lobby of the Guild is a small retail space. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
While the Guild now has a signature restaurant with the addition of Zuma, its original dining venue, a Mediterranean concept called Luca, was short-lived because of the pandemic. Operating in the hotel courtyard adjoining the lobby, it closed in 2020, never to fully reopen.
A few years ago, the Guild announced it was partnering with San Diego-based Be Saha Hospitality Group to take over the hotel’s food and beverage operations. As part of that partnership, Be Saha was to bring in a well-regarded Tijuana chef, Ruffo Ibarra, to oversee the new dining project, which was going to focus on Cali Baja-style cuisine.
The concept never took off after the Guild parted ways with Be Saha, Mansour said. The hotel, though, does offer dinner in its Lobby Bar, and the courtyard, where breakfast and lunch are served, will transform in the evenings into an area for aperitivos, Mansour said. A coffee bar is also planned for the outdoor location.
Eric Gilliatt installs artwork on the first floor of The Guild Hotel in downtown San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
A big component of the redesigned hotel is a specially curated collection of artwork, overseen by Oram Hotels’ director of Arts & Culture, Jennifer Findley. An especially eye-catching piece is a framed tableau of dead, shrunken basketballs, all coated with tar. The artist, California native Tyrell Winston, is known for his basketball wall sculptures.
The piece is meant to be, in part, an homage to the former Armed Service YMCA’s role as a refuge for service members, Findley said.
“He’s more known for the placement of these dead balls, but this one is more looking at kind of the blood, sweat and tears of sport,” said Findley, founder of La Jolla-based JFiN Collective, an art advisory and consulting firm. “And we loved it for the space, kind of making an homage to the military background, how much we put into life, but also an homage to the hotel.”
Another piece depicts both sunrise and sunset, which was inspired by a trip the artist took to Paris, Findley said.
Looking ahead, Mansour says he isn’t finished with his luxe upgrades of the downtown property. Next up, he said, is a wellness component that will involve creating a spa in the basement area, where there is now a gym that will be expanded.
“Wellness is going to be the key component of the evolution of the Guild,” Mansour said. “I think the demand is there and the guests are asking for it. If you’re a local, you can come here on a staycation for an extended period of time and have a new experience every night or every day.
Courtyard area at the Guild in downtown San Diego. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)
“And I think that’s the beauty of this hotel. You go outside, and you’re transported into a garden and, with the skyscrapers around you, you feel that sense of peace and calm, a place of refuge. You’re saying, ‘It feels like we’re in the living room, hanging out.’”