HELP SAVE BEAUTIFUL, HISTORIC HILLTOP HOUSE HOTEL, HARPERS FERRY WV

The historic Hilltop House Hotel was built by an African American family who moved to Harpers Ferry looking for opportunity and a new life after the Civil War.  It is nestled on a prominent hill overlooking one of the most amazing views in the country, the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers. This quaint little historic Civil War town shares borders with Virginia and Maryland and is surrounded by undisturbed national park lands.  Harpers Ferry is an extremely popular location for people all over the world to come and enjoy the breathtaking views, Civil War history and countless outdoor activities.

The hotel has hosted former Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Bill Clinton, and other distinguished quests, such as Alexander Graham Bell and Mark Twain just to name a few.  It has endured many trials and struggles along the way to include two fires in the early 1900, which resulted in some design changes to the look of the building.   However, the biggest challenge in the hotel’s 100+ year history has come in the last 10 years.

The hotel started to decline in maintenance and quickly deteriorated to a state of total disrepair about 11 years ago.  In an effort to rebuild the hotel, The SWaN Investment Group purchased the hotel in 2008.    The SWaN company intended to rebuild it while preserving as much of the history and integrity of the hotel as possible.   This was welcome news to the Jefferson County residents, as the investors have a long and successful history purchasing, restoring and rebuilding boutique hotels that have become an asset to each community that is fortunate enough to host one.

The SWaN vision for the Hilltop House Hotel is to incorporate the history surrounding this Civil War town with modern amenities that would make this town a sought after vacation destination, not just a Civil War historical town for a day visit.  The project would create many jobs, increase revenue for small local businesses  in the down town area and throughout Jefferson County.

Unfortunately, the SWaN dream of revitalizing the area quickly turned into somewhat of a nightmare to the local residents.  The project has not progressed and there is a threat that the SWaN company may withdraw and not proceed with the restoration.  Although it is difficult to understand and believe, the biggest threat to this project is our elected officials, Harpers Ferry Mayor and town Council members.  It appears that they have constantly created roadblocks to prevent the project from being approved for over 10 years.  The building is in horrible decay and is currently falling in on itself; it is an eyesore and a hazard to the community.  The SWaN company has already invested millions of dollars into improving the surrounding homes with zero return on their investment. They have shown good faith and met every demand imposed on them by our elected officials … with no reciprocity.  The SWaN team downsized the project to meet the mayor and city council’s demands and appears to have complied with every request from the elected representatives ... the very officials who have been holding the town as well as the investor’s hostage for over 10 years.

Please join us in urging the Mayor and Council to do their job and vote in the best interest of the people of Harpers Ferry and Jefferson County.  This town and the hilltop house hotel are national treasures and should be preserved as such. The citizens have every confidence in the developers dream and vision for this little slice of “wild and wonderful WV.” Sign this petition and urge the mayor and city council to stop being obstructionist and do their jobs … preserve the historical significance of this beautiful area, move us into the future, stop the appearance of  ethics violations by inflicting their own personal opinions and represent the people.