Ambassador Hotel

Diamond in the Rough

Selzer-Ornst uncovers Ambassador's grandeur

By Holly Johnson

No one expected to find marble floors.

But there they were in all their elegance hiding beneath layer after layer of old carpeting. The project team charged with renovating Milwaukee’s Ambassador Hotel on Wisconsin Avenue unearthed the marble floors in the hotel’s main lobby and then found terrazzo floors in the bar, restaurant and coffee shop.

“The bar area hadn’t been used for many years,” said Lynn Stein, project manager for general contractor Selzer-Ornst Co. “It’s taken on a whole new face-lift.”

The same can be said for the Ambassador Hotel as a whole. Starting in 2003, Selzer-Ornst’s team began peeling away the years from both the interior and exterior of the eight-story hotel in an effort to restore its original 1928 art deco design.

It wasn’t easy, Stein said, but the effort was worth it.

“It’s just beautiful,” she said. “It’s been completely remodeled and restored — not just a few coats of paint.”

The renovation kicked off with the hotel’s top two residential floors, which housed long-term tenants. It continued with the team adding a new kitchen and banquet facility to the restaurant and restoring the bar and coffee shop.

And Selzer-Ornst’s team managed to marry beauty and design with functionality and comfort in the restored building. For instance, when Selzer-Ornst rehabbed the bar, it added underslab heating to offer a cozy environment for visitors looking out over the city in winter.

But through it all, the goal of restoring the hotel’s original design loomed large for the project team. Architects from Torke Wirth Pujara Ltd. chose colors and furniture styles to reflect the overall theme, Stein said.

And the theme stuck with the construction team.

“As we’re pulling away layers of dropped ceilings, we’re staying true to the art deco style to recreate its original grandeur,” Stein said.


	Project Name: Ambassador Hotel Location: Milwaukee Submitting Company: Selzer-Ornst Co., Wauwatosa General Contractor: Selzer-Ornst Co. Architect: Torke Wirth Pujara Ltd., Wauwatosa Engineer: Pujara Wirth Torke Inc., Wauwatosa Owner: Ambassador Enterprises LLC, Milwaukee Project Cost: $12 million Project Size: 88,000 square feet Start Date: May 2003 Completion Date: October 2005

By restoring the hotel’s authentic ambiance, Selzer-Ornst helped the project owner realize a goal of changing the environment enough to draw a different clientele. To help court the targeted audience of business-class travelers, the room count was reduced from 189 to 133, which created several larger rooms.

While uncovering the structure’s original beauty, those working on the project needed to keep the hotel open without interrupting business during construction. The team worked hand in hand with the owner to make that happen, Stein said.

“We had to be minimally invasive,” she said.

And the interior wasn’t the only responsibility. Developing a new entrance and parking area proved challenging in such a busy downtown setting. But it was essential and added an extra touch of class to the restored hotel.

“The parking lot isn’t just asphalt but a patterned path with curves,” Stein said. “There’s also decorative concrete around the outside seating area.”

Selzer-Ornst also focused on other fine details to accent the exterior. The project team created neon signs to complement the art deco theme.

“It’s classy, not overdone,” said Stein.

And the finished product has helped the Ambassador earn the label of a destination hotel, she said. It’s even caught the attention of nearby Marquette University, which recommends the hotel to visitors.

“It’s a great tie-in to redevelop the Marquette area,” Stein said. “Even the food has gotten great reviews.”