The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-05-16
HOTEL FLORENCE ID OPEN NEXT MONTH Sum of S75,0O0 Expended in
 Improvements HOUSE PRACTICALLY NEW Homer w. Wilson of Nashville, an Experienced Hotel Man, Will be
 Manager for R. D. Burnett,
 the Lessee.
HOUSE PRACTICALLY NEW

The Hotel Florence will open on June 10. When the work of remodeling the house has been completed and the fur niture has been set up, the Improvements will represent an expenditure of $75,OO0 The hotel which was built In the early sos has been practically rebuilt. Homer w. Wilson of Nashville, an experienced hotel man, will be the manager.
 With one exception the entire ground floor of the hotel will be occupied by new tenants. R. D. Burnett. the lessee of the house, announced yesterday that he. had closed a long time lease with the Wells Amusement syndicate, which oper- ates the Bijou theatre in Birmingham anl play houses in other southern cities, for the use of the store on the Second avenue side of the house, now occupied by wholesale house. The Wells syndi- cate will expend something like sSoo0 in installing a "wonderland" or penny ar cade in this space.
 The wall between the space now oc cupied by the barber shop and the Cal l houn Jewelry company on the Nineteenth street side. will be taken out early in the fall. Negotiations have about been closed with a big southern concern for the lease of the space. It will be converted into an ice cream parlor and floral es- tablishment.
 Manager Wilson says thtat the safe in the Hotel Florence will be one of the finest in the south It will be the first in Birmingham to have telephones in- stalled on every table for the conven- fence of the guests. In fact there are very few eating places in the south where such a luxury is enjoyed. The cafe will be forty by sixty feet in size and it will be brilliantly illuminated with elec- trc lights. Just at the rear of the cafe is the kitchen, which is quite large.
 Will Install Electric Plant.
 MT. Burnett will install an electric light plant in a building which is now being erected at the rear of the kitchen The Hotel Florence will have 125 bedrooms, all of which will be lighted by electricity and heated by steam. There will be To- cal and a long distance telephone in each chamber.
 A greater part of the furr''
 arrived. Every room v
 be furnished - hoe"~ niaIt A Huaa spits aad
 h-lt-a prtytt fsofa 1naaHe1.I .he aaa w He ao efea with 9.s an0 2 sst,s saerl
 fhs ipthg r~lh ..e seatae e the Nine tse5th fcee d5 aH8 1t will be fln- sd 4ban.a white marble quarried asd iied at Sylacauga. The old dining
 J5n on the second floor has been con verted into a beautiful ballroom and con vention hall. Private dining rooms will also be located on the second floor. The bridal chambers and parlors. both public and private are on this floor, too.
 "The Hotel Florence will be operated strictly on the European plan" said Man ager Wilson yesterday afternoon.
 MT. Burnett has spent large sum on the hotel. and we are quite sure that His enterprise will be appreciated by the people of Birmingham and the travelling public.
 Pleased With Birmingham.
 This is without doubt the best city in the south, and 1t seems that everyone likes to come here. The policy of the Hotel Florence will be to cater to tran sients strictly. We have provided num- Der of large sample rooms throughout the house and we intend to make a spe- cialty of caring for the commercial travel ing men. I have a competent staff of assistants. and our effort will be to make the guests comfortable, first of all things"
 This hostelry was formerly known as the Florence hotel but MT. Burnett and Manager Wilson decided to change the name to the Hotel Florence, thus pre- serving the name of Mrs. Florence Mudd whose heirs now own the building. It is understood that an offer of s250,0OO for the building and site was refused just before the ten-year lease was secured by Mir Burnett.
 The interior has been repainted and plastered and new doors and windows put in. The exterior will be given sev- eral coats of paint, buff with black trim mings being the colors selected
 Mir. Burnett and his family will occupy apartments in the Hotel Florence.