In Litchfield, Abner Hotel brings ‘a new chapter’ for old courthouse

LITCHFIELD — The crowd that gathered in front of the old county courthouse wasn’t there for a trial; they were assembled to celebrate the building’s transformation into the Abner Hotel, a four-year project that was unveiled this week. 

The 20-room boutique hotel in Litchfield officially opens for business Sept. 12, but the owners invited town and state officials, business owners and residents on Monday afternoon for tours, a cocktail on the new rooftop bar and an opportunity to meet the owners and staff. 

“Opening the doors to this hotel opens a new chapter of energy, growth and prosperity for our town,” said First Selectwoman Denise Raap, who joined Salt Hotels owner David Bowd and the Abner Hotel’s owner Patrick Kenny, of Lexington Partners, to cut a commemorative gold ribbon. “We are happy to welcome you.”

Kenny’s father, the late Martin Kenny, was the first to pitch the idea of renovating the courthouse into a luxury boutique hotel. And the community was the key to the project’s success, Patrick Kenny said at the event. Salt Hotels, he said, under Bowd’s leadership, created beautiful spaces for the guests.

The courthouse, which has been vacant since 2017 when it was closed by the state, was purchased by Lexington Partners in 2020. The younger Kenny said he worked by his father’s side to open the Abner. 

“At first look, some might have said (the courthouse) might not have been the best bid for us,” he said. “But this 1888 building has been preserved and renovated thanks to the talented team we have.”

He thanked the local community for their support. “They have been so welcoming,” Kenny said. “The borough, the Litchfield Preservation Trust, the historic district commission, the town, the people. … Spending time in Litchfield has been very special.”

Salt Hotels runs boutique-style hotels in Miami Beach, Fla., Provincetown and Nantucket, Mass.; and Minneapolis as well as in Mexico.

To staff the new local hotel, in August the company offered residents a unique employment opportunity by hosting Salt School, a five-week, 20-hour intensive introduction to all facets of the hotel industry at the Abner.

The school was “born from a desire to hire as many local people as possible,” according to Bowd. The school, he said, is designed to prepare potential staff for employment regardless of their age, experience or prior knowledge of the hospitality industry. Salt Hotels hired many local residents to work at the Abner, Bowd said.

“We’re so excited,” Bowd said at the rooftop bar, The Verdict, which offers a view of Litchfield as well as the surrounding hills. Comfy couches and chairs, as well as bright green stools around the bar, offered plenty of room to relax and mingle, while small groups went for tours of the hotel below. 

The rear of the courthouse building is an addition to accommodate a new elevator and main entrance to the lobby. Guest rooms are on the second floor, painted in shades of marigold and cream and offset by rich colors in the carpets, the spreads on the king-size beds and the artwork on the walls. The hallways are cool and quiet, the doors have keypad entries, and the carpeted floors keep footsteps silent. 

But pieces of the historic building remain. In a round room off the guest room hallway, the stone walls still stand, painted white and flanking tall windows overlooking West Street. The entrance on that side has signs directing visitors to the back on a newly paved driveway to where there’s plenty of parking. The building’s granite walls are sparkling clean, with fresh white paint on the window frames. Flowers are planted on the small front lawn. 

Inside, wooden floors, wooden staircases and solid wooden doors lend a feeling of quiet luxury. The Courtroom, the Abner’s restaurant, is separated from the hotel by a double pane of glass. Seating varies from larger eating spaces to smaller rows of tables for two. There are white walls and hardwood floors, minimal decorations and plenty of light. The menu offers a variety of seafood as well as filet mignon or beef Wellington, and a choice of lighter fare, salads and burgers. 

Gayle Carr, a Litchfield attorney and Litchfield borough warden, admired a stairway with wooden railings. “I stood here so many times, talking with a client,” she said. 

She pointed out a guestroom that was once a judge’s chambers, and admired how Salt Hotels worked its magic to make the room seem larger. “I wondered how you were going to do that,” she told Kenny. “It’s amazing how it all fits.”

The principles, Kenny and Bowd, were thinking of Kenny’s father as they led visitors through the renovated spaces. 

“Marty Kenny’s vision was phenomenal,” Bowd said. “It’s a bittersweet feeling, today, because Marty’s not here with us. He died a year ago, very unexpectedly.”

The construction took about a year, Patrick Kenny said. That came after a “big application process we had to go through, to get a historic preservation tax credit; so that took some time,” he said. 

The federal Historic Preservation Tax Incentives program encourages private sector investment in the rehabilitation and reuse of historic buildings, according to nps.gov. 

In the end, a “very talented crew …. made it seem easy; I know it wasn’t,” Kenny said of the construction. “I’m exceedingly proud of what they’ve done here.”