The asset and the money
SREE Hotels LLC has completed a $5.5 million renovation at 617 Vine Street in Cincinnati. The work took six months. The address holds 249 rooms under two Hilton brands, Hampton Inn & Suites Cincinnati-Downtown and Homewood Suites by Hilton Cincinnati-Downtown.
The scope covers every guest room, all public space, the guest laundry and the fitness center. The property announced completion in October 2026.
One building, two brands, one owner
The two hotels share the building, the entrance and the operating team. SREE Hotels owns and manages both. The company's release boilerplate places it in Charlotte, North Carolina, and counts 25 hotels across North Carolina, South Carolina and Ohio, with two in development.
Aspasia Makris runs the dual-brand property as general manager, a role she has held since March 2024. She tied the project to the building's past. "Taking pride in preserving the character and history of this iconic Cincinnati building while continuing to enhance the guest experience is incredibly important to our team," Makris said.
What the rooms now carry
Both brands run free hot breakfast and complimentary Wi-Fi. A 24-hour fitness center serves the whole building. Hampton guest rooms carry in-room streaming entertainment, and the suites add a wet bar and a workspace. Homewood guest rooms carry free streaming entertainment, a kitchenette, a dining table, a workspace and a sofa bed. Both hotels sit inside Hilton Honors, which the release puts at 9,400 properties in 144 countries and territories.
A 1926 newspaper building
Lockwood Greene and Company designed 617 Vine Street, and it opened in 1926 as the home of The Cincinnati Enquirer. The paper worked from the address for more than 60 years. Its printing facilities moved to Western Avenue and Liberty Street in 1979, and the editorial offices left for 312 Elm Street in 1992.
The gold entrance, the elevators, the mail drops and the marble hallways survive both capital rounds. WKRP in Cincinnati ran from 1978 to 1982, and The New WKRP in Cincinnati followed from 1991 to 1993. Both series used 617 Vine as the exterior of the fictional Osgood R. Flimm Building.
Where the release needs a correction
The release dates the National Register of Historic Places listing to 1975. The register carries 13 November 1985 under reference number 85002787. The National Park Service record and the Wikipedia infobox carry 1985.
The release also describes a "249-room property" and then calls it "its" property while naming two hotels. The 249-room total holds. The 144-room Hampton and 105-room Homewood split is a 2015 figure, from the conversion of that year. No current per-brand count is published.
Reservations run through Hilton. The property answers at +1 (513) 354-2430.