Inn at Elon

This 80-room boutique hotel is located within the botanical gardens of Elon University. As a result of its prime location, the Inn now serves as the new “front door” of the University and is designed to blend seamlessly with the Colonial/Georgian Revival aesthetic of the existing campus. The exterior materials palette of brick cladding with white columns and expansive windows also includes residential references such as patios and awnings to distinguish the Inn from the surrounding academic buildings. Features of this upscale hotel include a fitness center and formal banquet room. It has 10 suites and 70 spacious rooms with soaring high ceilings. There is also a 24-hour business center, two meeting rooms and an outdoor courtyard with fire pits. The 78,000 s.f. facility also contains The Mark at Elon, an upscale, full-service restaurant and bar, open year-round.

The Inn at Elon’s location makes it a popular option for homecoming, family weekends, commencement, athletic events and cultural performances. Its purpose is to provide the opportunity for students and their families to immerse themselves in Elon’s environment and culture during their visit to the university.

A key feature in the design of the facility was the use of Hollowcore plank construction. Among the benefits of this construction method, it increases usable space by as much as 20 percent when compared with other floor ceiling systems. It also allows for longer spans, much thinner decks and is lighter than poured-in-place concrete construction. Often used in hotel or multi-family structures, Hollowcore helps to add structural stability while reducing the amount of material, which reduces the overall weight and cost. Additionally, Hollowcore plank construction is considered to be especially beneficial in facilities where noise must be minimized.

A native “Elon oak” was harvested onsite and is used in feature elements throughout the interior. The design embodies the University’s environment and culture and draws from the metaphor of the oak tree: like acorns seeding the future, 100% of hotel profits fund University scholarships.

One of the biggest challenges during construction was Mother Nature herself. While the project was under construction, the Triad area experienced the most rainfall ever (breaking a 141-year-old record by more than 18 inches), two hurricanes, and the longest duration of cold weather since 1918. Still, the team was able to complete this impressive project on time and under budget.

Since there was significant pedestrian and vehicular traffic around the south and west ends of the job site, as well as numerous live underground power lines throughout, the Christman team worked hard to ensure the safety of workers and the campus community. They made certain that all equipment had functioning backup alarms. Additionally, a safe walk-path was erected through and under scaffolding and clearly marked for pedestrian traffic for those instances where other paths of ingress/egress were not possible.