ERG Enterprises is converting a landmark Greek Revival mansion at 2127 Prytania Street into the Whit, a 15-room boutique hotel at the corner of Prytania and Jackson Avenue in the Garden District. The property is targeting a mid-fall 2026 opening. Alongside the guest rooms, the development will include a main-floor salon, private dining, and a series of indoor and outdoor event spaces, positioning the property as much as an events venue as a lodging asset.
The building carries an unusual history even by Garden District standards. The mansion was once raided by the FBI and has long circulated locally as a haunted property, giving ERG a recognizable address to work with as it repositions the house for hospitality use. The conversion preserves the original structure, including the soaring ceilings on the main floor that will house the salon.
Rather than operating a full restaurant, the Whit is taking a lighter food-and-beverage approach. The main-floor salon will serve drinks with light food, built around traditional tea service with cocktails added alongside it. The drinks list is being developed by Neal Bodenheimer, founder of the Uptown cocktail lounge Cure, who is simultaneously behind Mildred’s at the forthcoming Warbler Hotel on St. Charles Avenue. Kyle Brechtel’s hospitality group, best known for Copper Vine downtown, is working with ERG on the salon program.
The Whit is one of two projects Brechtel’s group has moving toward a mid-fall opening. The other is Charlotte’s at 3607 Magazine Street, a casual all-day French-inspired restaurant taking over the historic Uptown townhouse that housed the recently closed farm-to-table tasting restaurant Etoile. Named for Brechtel’s daughter, Charlotte’s will serve crepes, steak frites, and similar fare aimed at everyday visits rather than special occasions.
ERG Enterprises is the real estate investment firm led by Dr. Eric George, which has built a portfolio of historic New Orleans properties over the past decade. The firm acquired the United Fruit Building at 321 St. Charles Avenue in early 2020 in partnership with McDonnel Construction Services founder Allan McDonnel and other investors, planning a renovation that never advanced. That five-building, 95,000-square-foot assemblage — spanning 321 and 327 St. Charles Avenue and 710, 714, and 720 Union Street — is currently listed for sale through Corporate Realty.
The Whit adds another small-format property to a New Orleans boutique hotel pipeline that has grown steadily through 2026. The Warbler is bringing 58 rooms to 1923 St. Charles Avenue in late September, the Milky Way Motel is delivering 17 rooms on St. Claude Avenue in the Bywater, and a nine-suite conversion of four historic buildings at 518-526 Gravier Street is moving through permitting in the CBD. At 15 keys, the Whit sits at the smallest end of that group, with its event and salon program likely to carry a meaningful share of the revenue.
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