US capital for the rebirth of the Grand Hotel San Pellegrino Terme, a historic structure in Val Brembana in the province of Bergamo, inactive since 1979 .
"After some calls for tenders went deserted in January, the agreement was signed between the municipal administration and the Californian real estate company EKN Development - says Vittorio Milesi, deputy mayor of San Pellegrino Terme - with which the developers will have the surface rights on the area of the Grand Hotel, the building and the park for 99 years. The volume will remain the current one."
For the lease, the Municipality will collect 10,000 euros per year - a symbolic fee that takes into account the size of the investment - while for the renovation of the structure EKN will invest 64 million dollars, just over 61 million euros, to recover the structures, redevelop the park and build one or more swimming pools.
There is a public participation of 5 million euros, 3 from the Lombardy Region and 2 from the Municipality.
Works that will last 3 or 4 years.
The positioning of the Grand Hotel San Pellegrino Terme
As for the management of the hotel, the positioning will be in the luxury segment, it could be entrusted to giants of the sector such as, for example, Marriott or Hilton. Their emissaries have already visited the structure and made inspections.
The luxury of the Grand Hotel will return to its former glory not only with its 118 rooms but also with its innovative spa that uses the municipal springs with an adjoining “speakeasy lounge”, outdoor pools, a conference room with library and a bar in the large dome with an open-air terrace.
On the ground floor there is a restaurant and luxury shops.
The Spa project
"In the central area of the town there is the thermal water source "Sorgente vita," water used by QC Terme for non-curative purposes - continues the deputy mayor. The Municipality wants to restore the curative spas that are part of the history of San Pellegrino and has purchased the entirety of "Villa Giuseppina" from the Percassi Group for this purpose, signing the deed relating to the acquisition of the ground floor last February 10th."
This property is in a rustic state inside but in the years 2020/2021 important interventions were carried out for the renovation and recovery of the external envelope. "The Municipality has the executive project, already financed with 1.86 million euros, for the completion of the arrangement of the first, second and third floors but not of the ground floor because it did not own the entire building."
The goal of the administration
The administration's goal is to bring back to life the healing spa that operated until 2006. "We are thinking of contracting out and carrying out the arrangement of the aforementioned three floors of the building and of assigning the management of the healing spa center to specialized private operators through a tender for the entire building, including the ground floor, which will have to be recovered for purposes compatible with the spa activity," Milesi emphasizes.
Villa Giuseppina is in an excellent state of repair thanks to the restoration and the rustic arrangement was completed in 2021.
This building is also in Art Nouveau style and Villa Giuseppina was built in the 1920s at the behest of Commendatore Volonté, who was in charge of managing the Casino, Grand Hotel and Hotel Terme in Milan on behalf of the Grandi Alberghi company.
It was named in memory of Giuseppina Bisleri, owner with her husband of the Nocera Umbra water and the Ferrochina Bisleri liqueur. The villa is built in Art Nouveau style and is divided into four floors above ground. The entire building will be granted for management as a health spa.
Added to this latest initiative is the project for the construction of the Flagship factory of San Pellegrino, a company that is part of the Nestlé Waters group.
A project of about 100 million euros or for what will be a tourist attraction for the world-famous mineral water that flows in the territory of the municipality.
Art Nouveau in Italian hotels
There are not many Art Nouveau hotels in Italy. In addition to the GH in San Pellegrino, there is the Diana Majestic in Milan and the GH Royal in Viareggio. The one in Val Brembana was built in just two years based on a design by architect Romolo Squadrelli and engineer Luigi Mazzocchi.
Over the course of its history it hosted illustrious figures, such as Queen Margherita of Savoy, Queen Elena, Prince Umberto and the King of Egypt Faruk, Quasimodo, Tommasi di Lampedusa, Milan, the great Inter and many others.
Today, after having consolidated the structure, the Art Nouveau frescoes from the beginning of the century have been brought to light, as well as those from the 1920s in Art Deco style on the first floor. A painstaking job that involved eight restorers for three and a half years of work.
Copyright EKN Development 2025 All Rights Reserved
