Mount Pleasant Magazine Sept/Oct 2016

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Charleston Mayor Joe Riley.
“Mayor Riley said that if it
ought to be there in 100 years,
build it and make it last,” he said.
In addition to building
something that will be around
long after he is gone, Bennett
is concerned about making
sure Patriots Point and its
attractions remain intact for
future generations as well.
“Patriots Point is an
American classic,” Bennett said. “It’s a promotion of
America’s greatness. I have the chance to create money that
will help take care of the Yorktown in perpetuity.”
Bennett Hospitality owns and operates 18 hotels across
the country, including three in Mount Pleasant: The
Courtyard Marriott off Highway 17 and the Residence
Inn Marriott and the Hampton Inn on the Isle of
Palms Connector. He built his first hotel in downtown
Charleston in 1990, turning apartments on Meeting Street
into the Hampton Inn. The $101-million hotel Bennett
is building on Marion Square in Charleston is expected to
open in the fall of 2017.
Meanwhile, Bennett has
launched another project
at the foot of the Ravenel
Bridge in Mount Pleasant.
He hopes to break ground
at Ferry Wharf, where the
ferries pulled into Mount
Pleasant before the first
Cooper River Bridge was
built, late in 2016 or early
in 2017. Plans call for the
construction of hotels, retail space and office buildings.
Regardless of where or what he is building, Bennett’s
mantra remains to make it beautiful and make it last.
“I don’t ask how much money it’s going to cost,” he
explained. “As long as it doesn’t break me, I’m going to
build it, and I’m going to build it better than anyone ever
dreamed of.”
Among all his many projects, which is his greatest
accomplishment?
“Probably the one I like best is the one I’m working on
right now,” he said.
MIchael Bennett’s son, Jack, right, apparently is following in his
father’s footsteps. A recent Clemson graduate, he’s now part of
Bennett Hospitality.
Photo by Jenn Cady.
MPBM | |
811 Coleman Blvd.
Mount Pleasant, S.C.
(843) 884-1035
Locally Owned & Operated
For Over 14 Years
2016