IPR News

Long-Vacant Sioux City Hotel Reopening This Weekend

Iowa Public Radio | By Katie Peikes

Published September 8, 2020 at 5:13 PM CDT

The lobby of the Warrior Hotel. The Gills said they're especially proud of the imperial Indian red granite floor. It matches the original floor's stone "almost perfectly," Amrit Gill said.

Starting Saturday, people will be able to stay at the reopened Warrior Hotel in downtown Sioux City. It was vacant for more than 40 years.

A historic hotel in downtown Sioux City that has been vacant for more than four decades will reopen on Saturday.

The Warrior Hotel and the adjacent Davidson Building have been renovated into a Marriott Autograph Collection hotel with 148 guest rooms and 22 luxury apartments. The hotel’s owners and developers, Amrit and Amy Gill of Restoration St. Louis, wanted to incorporate the history of this hotel and its "classic" and "quirky" nature into a modern design.

“The vision was to give Sioux City a premier downtown historic hotel that would be the heartbeat of this community,” Amrit Gill said.

Amrit and Amy Gill said they wanted the Warrior to be something Sioux City is proud of.

Amrit and Amy Gill of Restoration St. Louis spearheaded the renovation of the Warrior Hotel in downtown Sioux City.

“It’s a lot more than just a hotel,” Amrit Gill said.

“It’s for the people of Sioux City to come and have a drink and enjoy being here,” Amy Gill said. “You may have a staycation. I don't know how many times you have a staycation in Sioux City, but you can now, right?”

One of the tables in the ballroom of the Warrior, which was set up for a wedding last Saturday. — One of the tables in the Warrior's ballroom, which was set up for a wedding last Saturday.

The Gills replicated some of the 10-story hotel’s historic decorations. Buffalo skulls adorn columns in the hotel’s lobby. A decorative pattern along a part of a lobby wall called a Greek key was carried into the ballroom, the Gills said. They also replicated the hotel’s art deco-style.

Buffalo skulls adorn columns in the lobby of the Warrior Hotel. These skulls are from the original hotel and were restored.

The renovated hotel has an upscale restaurant called Woodbury’s American Steakhouse, a ballroom, bars, a bowling alley, a spa and more. Most of the amenities will be open this weekend, while the spa will open later this fall and the rooftop bar will open in spring 2021.

Woodbury's American Steakhouse at the Warrior is open to guests and the public. It's currently serving dinner only. — Woodbury's American Steakhouse at the Warrior is open to guests and the public. It is currently serving dinner only.

In the Davidson Building, there are 56 of the 148 hotel rooms. The top two floors of the building will house 22 luxury apartments. The Gills said they prioritized construction of the Warrior over the Davidson Building. The Davidson apartments will open in November.

People can bowl at the Warrior Eagle Lanes in the hotel. They can also have a drink and play darts or pool.

The Warrior Hotel was built in 1930 and closed in 1976. The Davidson Building was built in 1913 and provided space to various offices. The use of the building started to wane in the early 2000s. A Japanese restaurant was the last tenant to move out, in February 2019. Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Saturday is a “soft opening” for the hotel. People with reservations will be able to stay in about 80 of the 148 hotel rooms. The Davidson apartments will open in November.

The Gills said the grand opening will be some time in early 2021.