by Cynthia Young
Contributing Editor

How do you . . . connect an existing building to its previously neglected—and fabulous—outdoor spaces and views?

Summary: Like many Ritz-Carlton hotels across the country, the elegant Ritz-Carlton in Palm Beach has for years exuded the air of understated luxury with its graceful architecture, furniture, and décor in classic taupes and grays. Outside, its distinguished façade overlooked the sea, yet inside, guests sometimes wandered about searching for the pool, unable to easily access the sparkling ocean beyond. Still, over the years the turquoise ocean beckoned—and now the resort has answered its call, thanks to RTKL Associates’ Tampa office.

The Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach has opened its arms wide with a $60-million expansion this spring to embrace its dramatic setting by the sea—a transformation that infuses an airy ambiance throughout the resort. Open and inviting, the hotel lobby and lounge feature creamy furnishings enveloped by warm colored walls, a sun-dappled sea peeks out from windows and carefully selected works of art—and everywhere the visitor is lured to the ocean. The resort has captured the spirit of Palm Beach, and it is all about casual elegance, engaging the senses, and connecting with the water.

“Our hotel represented a classic, traditional Ritz-Carlton, whether it was in Boston, Naples, or Dearborn,” says Brad Cance, general manager of the Ritz-Carlton, Palm Beach. “One could have picked it up and stuck it here on the beach. Our design change enables us to be more indigenous—it represents Palm Beach. You feel like you are in a Palm Beach estate, in someone’s living room with items they have collected from their travels. It is unique to any hotel in our company.”

Casual, barefoot elegance
“Whereas other properties may be thought of as opulent, there is now a casual, barefoot elegance to this property,” agrees Malcolm Berg, Assoc. AIA, principal, RTKL Associates Inc., of Miami, Fla., who led the team that transformed the resort. “It’s now about creating a mood of understated sophistication, one that shows a casual, lighthearted comfort.”

Previously, the lobby and lounge were not physically connected to the grounds, the pool, and the ocean. “When we first walked the property, it had the traditional northern aura to it. Immediately confronted by an old English fireplace and a dark lobby and lounge, the pool and the ocean were nowhere to be seen,” says Berg. “Our initial and long-lasting impression was a need to feel like you were arriving at a Palm Beach property. We said let’s blow out the windows and create doors and design an expansive terrace that brings the outside in.”

And they did. The designers opened up the lobby, deleted ornamental columns, and created an interior space with a direct view of the outside. They constructed a 3,300-square-foot circular terrace outside the lobby that wraps around the new restaurants and provides direct access to the outdoors. “As soon as you step into the lobby you can now see through the lounge to the terrace and the pool, and beyond it to the ocean,” notes Berg.

Firepit as a uniter
The new terrace, with its cascading water feature and central firepit, bridges the gap between the inside and outside spaces. “The firepit brings people together; it engages them in conversation,” says Berg. “It is the exterior hearth of the property. During the day the sound of the water brings guests to the edge of the veranda, closer to the ocean. At night one’s eyes are drawn to the lapping flames of the firepit.”

“There was a discontinuity between the interior and exterior space,” notes Berg. “The windows in the lobby lounge were 12 feet above the grounds. We literally brought the ground up. Now there is only a 5-foot drop from the terrace to the grass below. There is much more of a direct relationship between the two spaces. It is lot more fluid now.” The designers completely redid the grounds and added a new Tranquility Pool at the water’s edge, which features arcing water spouts that frame the ocean beyond.

Combining traditional and contemporary
Inside, the Ritz remodeled all the guest rooms in a “transitional” design approach—not quite traditional and not quite contemporary, but rather a combination of both, notes Berg. The luxurious renovation included 42 suites at $103,000 each and totaled 284 guest rooms. Room upgrades include the latest technology; Italian furniture; and custom-made, elevated, cast-concrete bathtubs that can fit two people. From the tub, double-frosted glass French doors open up to breathtaking ocean views.

On the ground floor, the designers also created the new Lanai terrace suites. Overlooking the ocean, these elegant suites easily access the water with extended verandas that contain chaise furniture and teak trellises, covered for privacy with fabric and flowering vines.

The resort’s interior décor was created by Todd-Avery Lenahan, president of Avery Brooks & Associates, using a warm, light-colored palette that gives the hotel a sense of openness and breeziness. Avery Brooks also created the design theme for the resort’s restaurants.

And the Ritz is continuing its renovations. Opening in March 2008 are facilities for kids and teens located just beneath the terrace: a Ritz Kid’s center called Acquanauts, and a teen center, Coast—an adult-free zone containing every high-tech gadget teenagers adore, including iPod stations, computer hookups, and electronic games. RTKL is also leading the design of a new 24-guestroom tower and a grand 28,000-square-foot spa, slated to open in 2008 as well. The spa contains a salon, 17 treatment rooms, and abundant water features inside and out. “We are building features that appeal to the senses—we call it fire and soul. It’s a lifestyle we create with water features and design,” says Cance. “We’ve tied all these together with a nice little bow. We’ve transformed this resort. Palm Beach is an incredible destination—you can’t be closer to the water.”