ASHEVILLE, North Carolina—Moxy Asheville officially opened, celebrating with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and remarks from project partners and local dignitaries. Located on Biltmore Avenue, Moxy Asheville is six stories tall with 115 guestrooms. Guests are greeted with a cocktail, mocktail, or coffee along with their room key upon check-in at Bar Moxy.
Moxy Asheville’s communal spaces and bedrooms are customized and non-prototypical. The hotel’s lobby includes contemporary furniture, an open workspace, and a video wall. A grab-and-go market is stationed in the lobby, providing breakfast offerings and convenient items for guests on the move.
Also officially open, an independent rooftop bar and restaurant, Wildwood Still, adorns the seventh floor, serving 150+ whiskeys and bourbons, craft cocktails, beer and wine, and small plates. Austin Tisdale has been named executive chef of Wildwood Still, leading the restaurant’s menu creation and ingredient sourcing. Tisdale has held positions at local favorites including The Grove Park Inn, Bouchon French Bistro, Lexington Avenue Brewery, and Bargello, the latter where he most recently served as sous chef. Christa Baer has been appointed food and beverage director for Wildwood Still and Moxy Asheville, is responsible for overseeing the Wildwood Still team.
The work of nearly 20 different local and regional artists is featured throughout the property and Wildwood Still. This includes North Carolina’s tallest mural created by Scott Allred of Bruschcan Studios on the hotel’s exterior and a 120-gallon custom moonshine still from Ace Custom Copper, which marks the exterior entrance to the rooftop bar and restaurant.
Forming a new dual-brand offering, Moxy Asheville is connected to the existing Aloft Asheville Downtown. The hotels have separate lobbies and elevators; however, guests of both brands share access to amenities including the Splash pool deck with cabanas, a fitness center equipped with Peloton bikes, and meeting space.
Moxy Asheville is owned by McKibbon Equities. Winford Lindsey served as the architect with Seattle-based hospitality design firm, The Society, handling interior design for the project. McKibbon Places led construction and design as project manager with Kellogg & Kimsey serving as the general contractor.
“Our team is thrilled to welcome this exciting new property to the portfolio,” said J.B. McKibbon, president of McKibbon Equities. “Asheville has solidified itself as a must-visit destination in the south and as we expand our footprint in North Carolina we couldn’t be prouder to share the beloved Moxy brand with this community and its visitors.”
The hotel is operated by McKibbon’s hotel management arm, McKibbon Hospitality, which established the on-property leadership team led by Captain/Dual General Manager Dexter Hazel with Jamie Tudico serving as market director of sales. In his role, Hazel is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the Moxy along with its sister property, Aloft Asheville Downtown. Tudico is responsible for revenue generation for Moxy Asheville, as well as McKibbon’s additional downtown properties: Aloft Asheville Downtown, AC Hotel Asheville Downtown, and Kimpton Hotel Arras.
