Historic St. James Hotel in Selma Under New Management

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From the West Alabama Newsroom– The historic St. James Hotel in downtown Selma is once again under new management — and could soon have a new owner.

Businessman and Selma native Mark Peterson is the acting general manager of the St. James Hotel. He has also submitted a proposal to buy the hotel from the city.

Peterson says he wants to make the hotel a focal point of tourism in the city.

“This old lady here has seen all of the history of this region from the Civil War up through the Civil Rights Movement and we want to return her to that prominence. We want to refer to this as the front porch to history,” said Peterson.

“We want this to be the destination point for tourists who come to the city to start their journey to learn about the history of the region.”

Peterson and the city are negotiating the terms of the sale of the hotel.

The city had been running the St. James since the management company the city hired to run it — quit earlier this year.