WILLIAMSBURG — Williamsburg’s Rochambeau Roadside Inn will be opening as a boutique motel in the coming weeks and is expecting to soon start taking reservations for the fall.
The property dates back to 1954 under the ownership of David Bryhn and his father.
Local Lyle Schiavone, who grew up in Williamsburg, noticed a “For Sale by Owner” sign in front of the property five years ago when his mother was working at Spring Arboure Nursing Facility next to the motel. That’s when Schiavone started talking with Bryhn about the property.
Things had to be placed on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic, but after talks with the city of Williamsburg, it was decided that the best use for the property would be a revitalization of the motel.
Schiavone also learned more about the Corridor Improvement Project and the planned 10-by-10-foot wide divided sidewalks and bike lanes that would lead into Williamsburg, passing right in front of the building.
Having experience as a small real estate developer for the last 10 years, Schiavone was looking for projects that would have a high impact, and to him, this project was something that would do just that.
The motel will feature 22 rooms with a variety of suite types. The rooms will have vaulted ceilings, woven rugs, both handcrafted and vintage furnishings, locally sourced artwork and modern conveniences. The rooms were stripped down to the bone to offer brand-new utilities and amenities for the motel.
Schiavone has been reaching out to Edge District businesses for much of its locally sourced offerings. Some of the partnerships include Virginia Beer Company, which will be making a canned beer for the motel called “Rochambrew,” and Parkway Printshop, which is making the motel’s t-shirts.
“Really leaning into the local community to bring those products into our offering but with the same intent of doing things in some of our spaces where we invite locals,” Schiavone explained, adding they are looking into the possibility of having food trucks come to the property and highlighting an outdoor patio area with an amenities that is currently being called the “Party Barn.”
In honor of the motel’s namesake, Comte de Rochambeau, the motel wants to build its image as an “expeditionary base camp” for people’s Historic Triangle adventure. To help facilitate that, the motel plans to also offer bicycles for guests to borrow, as well as an ice/water bottle fill station. It also plans on having a variety of grab-and-go items in the shop and for each room to have a cooler.
“Ideally you could take your cooler from your room, fill it up with ice, come into the lobby, and grab a couple of grab-and-go items that we’ve worked with local businesses to provide that morning, and you put it in a basket on a bicycle and you bike 15 minutes to Colonial Williamsburg,” Schiavone explained.
Schiavone says there have been multiple enjoyable and memorable moments during the project’s evolution.
One such moment was when he was at the farmer’s market with his family and his father was wearing a yet-to-be-released T-shirt for the motel, as Schiavone jokes that they have to wear the T-shirt if he gives it to them.
During a trip to the farmers market, his father was wearing a yet-to-be-released t-shirt for the motel and an older woman asked about the shirt and where he had gotten it, explaining she and her husband had stayed at the hotel for years in the ’90s.
“Coming at this not as hotel people I think has been a blessing,” Schiavone said. “We’ve worked backwards as travelers for things that we really care about.”
For example, he explained about finding a local company, Paramount Sleep in Norfolk, to get the handcrafted mattresses for the hotel. Several samples were sent to his parents’ house, and he and his family have been rotating sleeping on them for the past four months to make sure they like the mattress and pick the best one.
The motel looks to start accepting bookings for the fall soon. For more information, visit its official website.
