Millions of visitors each year walk the uneven, hand-laid cobblestones of River Street in Savannah, exploring the dozens of shops, restaurants, hotels and attractions housed in the former cotton warehouses that line the Savannah River.
Last year the city’s riverfront changed dramatically with the opening of the $375 million Plant Riverside District, which extended the waterfront by 1,100 feet and transformed a once-seedy area into a lively mixed-use development inside a restored 1912 power plant.
Hospitality company The Kessler Collection, founded by the Kessler family whose Savannah roots go back to the city’s founding in the 1730s, led the district’s development.
“We love Savannah, and we saw in this site the opportunity to create something the city didn’t have and what it needed,” said Mark Kessler, president and COO, and son of founder Richard Kessler. “The riverside location was ideal and full of potential.”
After acquiring the property in 2012, the company sought input from the community and gathered ideas on how to develop the site. “Our vision was to create a family-friendly entertainment district and redefine the riverfront. It was unlike anything we had done before, and we wanted it to be a lasting legacy for our company.”
Phase One opened in summer 2020. When Phase Two opens this summer, Plant Riverside District will offer 419 hotel rooms, a mix of shops, more than a dozen restaurants, a parking garage, meeting space, a live music venue and two rooftop bars.
The development will feature a Martin Luther King Jr. bronze statue as the focal point of the new Martin Luther King Memorial Park, an expansive green space with an outdoor stage, terraced lawn and a large interactive water fountain with daily light shows.
A standout attraction is Generator Hall. While it serves as the spacious lobby of the JW Marriott Savannah Plant Riverside District, it feels more like a natural history gallery: a 135-foot chrome dinosaur greets visitors, and throughout the space are massive geodes, fossil exhibits, an Ice Age bear skeleton and a prehistoric tortoise shell.
PHOTO: © COURTESY OF PLANT RIVERSIDE DISTRICT
The Plant Riverside District has drawn enthusiastic praise from both visitors and locals in a city where tourism and hospitality drive the economy. “We have engaged the community and made Plant Riverside District an economic generator,” Mark Kessler said. “It has served as a catalyst for more development at that end of River Street.”
“The new JW Marriott Hotel and Plant Riverside District have already become what developer Richard Kessler envisioned — a game-changer,” said Joseph Marinelli, president of Visit Savannah. “Even amid its opening during a global pandemic, Plant Riverside has begun to transform Savannah’s waterfront experience for locals and visitors alike. From the giant geodes to the historic character of the power plant to the variety of shops and dining, Plant Riverside is a destination within one of America’s most popular visitor cities.”
Part-time residents Mindy and Mike Egan echoed that view. “Plant Riverside is a fantastic addition to a stretch of River Street that needed an upgrade,” Mike said. “There’s something for every member of the family: upscale restaurants, striking artifact displays in the hotel lobby and our favorite feature, the rooftop patios. It’s now a must-see for visitors to town.”