Story

The goal of the Rosewood Hotel project was to improve the safe operation of the first-floor restaurant by demolishing the existing kitchen exhaust infrastructure and constructing a new kitchen exhaust riser through the building so exhaust air could be vented out through the roof. The job was complicated by the client’s 12-week schedule requirement (to minimize the restaurant’s downtime) and the client’s requirement that the hotel remain open throughout construction. Major scope items included the following: - Accommodating a last-minute request to relocate a large portion of existing kitchen equipment into the dining room to maintain a limited food service capability. - Construction of eight temporary partitions to isolate construction zone from guest areas. - Demolition of the entire kitchen ceiling to include two air scrubber systems, all existing grease and make-up air duct. Removal of existing equipment to allow for the main kitchen hood to be lowered in-place. - Selective demolition inside eight hotel rooms (including both Presidential Suites) to allow for structural reinforcement by means of carbon fiber and structural steel. - Lowering the existing kitchen hood in-place to allow structural reinforcement of the slab above. - Column reinforcement via mechanical fastening at two locations. - Demolition through seven concrete slabs to create access for the new grease duct riser, including directly above the existing kitchen hood. - Construction of a 2-hour rated shaft riser within existing hotel rooms which required reconfiguring the floor plan in five different suites. - Complete relocation of a bathroom in one of the Presidential Suites. The new bathroom was also upgraded to achieve ADA compliance. - Construction of a gantry on the side of the building to lift the new kitchen exhaust fans onto the roof. A crane was not feasible due to the infrastructure in the nearby roadways and canal on the north side of the hotel. - Construction of a temporary rooftop “green wall” to conceal the construction area while maintaining a functional rooftop lounge. - Installation of scaffolding over an infinity pool so a pool exhaust fan could be relocated to make room on the roof for new kitchen exhaust fans. - Selective demolition of the roof deck and construction of a new steel-framed chimney structure to conceal the grease duct as it travels up the side of the roof deck and turns over the penthouse roof. - Color-matching the brick on the new chimney enclosure to provide a seamless look with the existing structure. - Reinstalling premium finishes to include custom plaster crown molding, domed ceilings, and marble floors. This was a non-typical project because the goal was to make the hotel appear as if nothing had changed. The team successfully upgraded critical building systems while minimizing disruption to hotel services. All parties worked closely together to pull off an extremely invasive renovation that ultimately allowed the hotel and restaurant to minimize their risk of fire within the kitchen exhaust system.