Hotel Marcel, Tapestry Collection by Hilton
NEW HAVEN, CT
Architecture: Bruce Redman Becker, FAIA | Becker + Becker
Design: Larah Moravek and Dieter Cartwright | Dutch East Design
Hotel Marcel results from the transformation of the former Pirelli building, originally designed by Marcel Breuer in 1969, into a 165-room boutique hotel and conference center. It is the first hotel in the United States designed to meet Passive House standards.
Opened in May 2022, Hotel Marcel creates a new model for sustainable hospitality through electrification, zero operational carbon and minimizing embodied carbon through adaptive re-use of an existing building. This certified historic rehabilitation of a midcentury modern masterpiece is enhanced by an interior design aesthetic that complements and softens the exterior Brutalist architecture.
These attributes are augmented with pioneering all-electric systems, including Power-Over-Ethernet shades and lighting, and a renewable microgrid with battery storage to achieve an energy balance that uses no fossil fuels.
New triple-pane windows provide optimal acoustical and thermal barriers, meeting Passive House criteria, but also provide what guests observed as the quietest hotel room they have experienced.
Hotel Marcel offers “Hospitality for the Planet” and demonstrates that a zero-emission hotel can also provide greater comfort and more refined aesthetics, creating an enhanced guest experience. No use of fossil fuels; simple, modern design; a “less is more” approach: Marcel Breuer’s design aesthetic inspired every design detail of Hotel Marcel.
Bruce Redman Becker, FAIA, is the president of Becker + Becker, an integrated sustainable architecture and development firm in Westport, Connecticut. A fellow of the AIA, and a certified passive house designer, he was appointed by President Biden to the United States Commission of Fine Arts.
Bruce also serves on the board of the Passive House Network. He received a B.A. from Amherst College and MBA and Master of Architecture degrees from Yale University.
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