BLOWING ROCK, N.C. (NC NOW) – The partial demolition of a historic western North Carolina hotel has begun.

The Green Park Inn property on Highway 321 in Blowing Rock will undergo a massive makeover, and that makeover includes tearing part of the hotel down.

Earlier this year, the owners of the Green Park Inn property went before Blowing Rock leaders and presented a plan to reduce the hotel from 88 to 40 rooms, and to add a 12-unit condominium and four duplex units.

Documents filed with the town said the condos will be made to look like other parts of the Green Park historic area, and the duplexes will be built with similar exterior materials.

The plan called for getting rid of the parts of the hotel that were not in the original construction, and adding wedding venue space and a larger restaurant in addition to the condos and duplexes.

The documents further stated that the hotel lobby and other parts of the main floor would be maintained and restored. Of the parts that are to be torn down, the demolition is supposed to be done “carefully” in order to salvage materials for reuse.

To make room for visitors at the redeveloped property, a 151-space parking lot will be created. The aforementioned documents claim that is nearly 20 spaces more than the project needs.

History of the Green Park Inn

The Green Park Inn has hosted several historical figures since it opened in 1891.

Among them are presidents Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover, businessman J.D. Rockefeller and sharpshooter Annie Oakley. Author Margaret Mitchell also stayed at the inn, and is believed to have written part of “Gone With The Wind” during her visit.

At one point, the hotel housed the only United States post office in the area.

The Green Park Inn was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and is a member of the Historic Hotels of America.

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***Image Credit: Town of Blowing Rock documents