Page 95 - enLIGHTenment Magazine - December 2015

Sea-Worthy

with a lobby bar, si ing area, and breakfast room. capacity or another – in hospitality management.

The décor perfectly re ects the twins’ design You could say it’s part of our DNA; we were lit-

sensibilities. “We did not engage the services of an erally born into the business,” Bre notes. “My
outside contractor,” notes Bre Smith. “Rather, my parents bought their rst hotel in 1951 and it’s been

brother and I did the entire design plan ourselves in our family for over 60 years. My brother Sco
— including the lighting. Guests are intrigued by went the family route and has been the Owner/

the di erent lighting that we feature, and it is an General Manager of the Chateau Inn & Suites in
extremely important component of our interior
Spring Lake for more than 30 years.” (The Cha-

design package.”
teau boasts 37 guest rooms and has been widely

recognized as one of the premier small lodging
A nod to history
properties on the East Coast.)

The Smith brothers know a lot about what guests “I went in a more independent direction and
are looking for in a lodging experience. “Sco had the good fortune of having an almost 35-year

and I have spent virtually our entire lives – in one
career as a hospitality executive, having been af-

liated with Amelia Island Plantation, the Boca
Raton Hotel & Club, South Seas Resort Co. for 20

years, and the TradeWinds Resort in St. Peters-
burg to name a few,” Bre explains. “Sco and I

last worked together as Co-General Managers in

1969, running the Lakeview Hotel, a 44-unit prop-
erty in Spring Lake. Our recent collaboration with

the Black Dolphin Inn – the reconstitution of the
facilities began in 2010 and lasted a li le over two

years – allowed us to combine our development,

interior design, and operational skill sets.”

Lighting the WAy
Sco Smith makes no bones about it; he loves

lighting. “I love the shadows that lighting creates,

and the organic materials, and the proportions,”
he remarks, admi ing to a penchant for 1960s

above: Even the dock
entrance carries through the
resort’s unique aesthetic. The

lighting for the dock is hidden
from view, eliminating glare.

right: You don’t o en see
this much portable and xed
lighting in a hotel guest room,
but the plentiful amount

at the Black Dolphin Inn
demonstrates Sco Smith’s
love of vintage lamps and
sconces from the 1960s and

early ’70s.

deceMber 2015 | enLIGHTenment Magazine 93