and Fran Shipman have been running it as a wedding venue and event space. But Tom Shipman always had bigger dreams, according to the Shipmans' daughter, Amy Shipman.
"It has always been my daddy’s dream to see the property developed and developed in a way that benefits the community and all the people living here. He always wanted to house the wedding party on property," she told the Times-News on Dec. 22.
Now that dream is one step closer to reality.
Amy Shipman said the project for the Fairmont Heritage Place - The Cedars, Hendersonville, located at 227 Seventh Ave. W., recently obtained one of its final permits to begin construction. Thanks to the partnership with Fairmont Hotels, a national chain of luxury hotels,
The Cedars' property will be transformed and feature 127 luxury condo units in two new six-story, mid-rise buildings connected to the restored original building by a glass atrium.
The condos will consist of one-, two- and three-bedroom units and penthouses with prices ranging from $400,000 to $3.8 million, according to past Times-News reporting. The 24 studios in the project’s first building, the Pisgah Tower, have already sold out.
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The historic building will be remodeled and contain a lobby lounge, bar, signature restaurant, specialty café and front desk.
"It is so exciting to be a part of making (my dad's) dreams come true," Amy Shipman said. "I have been involved since conception, in the beginning helping to design and conceive the project and now I manage all the sales of the condo units.
"We have assembled a team of the top architects, engineers and contractors in the region, so it's been quite a process dealing with all of them, plus the Fairmont Hotels family, as they have their own design people overseeing our team."
Turner Construction and Carolina Specialties are the two main construction companies that will be working on the project, Shipman said.
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The Cedars hotel is on the National Register of Historic Places and was originally built in 1914 for Jeannie Bailey, whose husband J.W. Bailey headed Southern Railway. Just a few years before, Theresa Fair Oelrichs and her sister Virginia Fair Vanderbilt debuted the first Fairmont hotel in San Francisco in honor of Nevada Senator and mining magnate James Graham Fair.
When the project was first announced, there were several comments posted on social media that were against it, but Shipman said she's seen no organized opposition to the development.
"We had four public hearings. We passed all those meetings on the first attempt and never had anyone speak against or even vote against the project. It was a unanimous decision to move forward with the development of The Cedars," she said. "I don't consider a couple of fake profiles on a Facebook page against all development in Hendersonville as organized opposition. Yes, it's true that some people are nervous about growth in Hendersonville, but we feel our project will have a great public benefit as The Cedars will once again hold events and small conventions that will not only bring patrons to our downtown retail shops but Henderson County as well. We feel that downtown is the right area for this kind of sustainable growth and density and is much needed in our area."
Shipman said they now expect construction to start in the beginning of 2024 and be completed in late 2025 and hinted at several big announcements ahead.
"One in particular is about a famous chef and his amazing restaurant," she said. "The year 2024 is going to be an exciting year with activity onsite, construction cranes and crews and more special announcements to come."
For more information about Fairmont Heritage Place - The Cedars, Hendersonville, or to be added to the list of prospective buyers, go to www.fairmontresidencesthecedars.com.
Dean Hensley is the news editor for the Hendersonville Times-News. Email him with tips, questions and comments at DHensley@gannett.com. Please help support this kind of local journalism with a subscription to the Hendersonville Times-News.
