Columbia’s BullStreet District will get a new seven-story hotel. What we know
New details have emerged on a boutique hotel coming to a growing district near downtown Columbia.
Local officials formally announced Tuesday that Grand Willow, a seven-story, 136-room hotel, will be built at 1571 Freed Street in the BullStreet District. The hotel, which is set to be completed in late 2027, will be located behind the REI outdoor store, and adjacent to the Segra Park baseball stadium that is home to the Columbia Fireflies.
Vulcan Real Estate Development is shepherding the hotel project, along with a host of partners, including, among others, Hughes Development, the master developer of the overall project that is reimagining the sprawling 181-acre BullStreet site that formerly was home to the State Mental Hospital.
Aside from 136 guest rooms, Grand Willow — which will be part of the Hilton Collection — will have 5,000 square feet of meeting and event space, a release noted. It will boast a wellness-focused pool and patio area with a lap pool, a cold plunge pool, a sauna and private cabanas.
Grand Willow will feature a lobby café for coffee, tea, pastries and lighter fare, as well as an upscale restaurant on the seventh floor that will, according to a release, “feature locally inspired, seasonal dishes presented in a setting of understated sophistication.”
The hotel will also have a rooftop bar.
“Projects like this one boost the Columbia area’s appeal and competitiveness,” Richland County Chairwoman Jesica Mackey said in the release.
The coming hotel is the latest in a string of developments that have arrived or are under development at the BullStreet District.
For example, the new Gather COLA food hall is under construction and is set to open later this year. It will feature 10 restaurants and food vendors, as well as two bars and retail spaces. Right next door to Gather there is a community lawn space under development, and it will be highlighted by a Coastal Crust pizza location in a portion of the former Williams Building.
Methodical Coffee, which has made a name for itself in the Greenville area, just opened its first Columbia location last month in BullStreet’s WestLawn office building, and Tupelo Honey restaurant debuted a location in the district earlier this year.
Meanwhile, hundreds of apartments are now located on the BullStreet grounds, including in the historic former Babcock Building. And in perhaps the most aggressive project at the district, the University of South Carolina is currently building a new medical school as part of a planned $300 million health sciences campus on the eastern side of the district. That medical school is slated to open in 2027.
This story was originally published November 5, 2025 at 11:50 AM.
