Although located just east of Elbert Ward, the Downtowner Motor Inn preceded the large urban renewal projects to its west in bringing an automobile-oriented modernity to Savannah’s historic district. Founded in Memphis in 1958, the Downtowner Corporation was a small national chain that sought to bridge the gap between suburban and urban motels by creating

mid-rise, hovering, concrete-frame blocks surrounded by parking lots. Apart from a pair of internal elevators, the external staircases and balcony corridors, which are enlivened with traditional ornate ironwork, dramatize a sense of movement. When it opened the building was described as having “204 ultramodern rooms or suites designed to give the utmost comfort and luxury.” It was converted into a SCAD dormitory in 1990.