Pedestrian-friendly streetscape with natural stone walls, planting, and inviting public gathering spaces.

The Francis Hotel

The design intent for The Francis Hotel was to create an outdoor experience worthy of a boutique hotel while honoring the character, history, and evolving spirit of downtown Kennett Square. As part of this significant community project, GreenRoots partnered with Square Roots Collective and The Francis to transform the property into a destination that feels distinctly connected to its surroundings.

From the street to the courtyard, the landscape was designed to create a sense of arrival and discovery. A custom-manufactured steel gate establishes a strong architectural threshold, welcoming guests into a more intimate world beyond. Within the courtyard, layered plantings, natural materials, and a sculptural water feature create a lush and inviting retreat that contrasts beautifully with the surrounding architecture.

Location

Kennett Square,
Pennsylvania

Design/Install

GreenRoots
Design Firm

Interior Design

Riverwards
General

Photography

Mark Rutt
Creative

Wire fairy sculpture holding a dandelion seed head in a garden bed of echinacea and verbena with cafe seating alongside
Open wood and glass entry door with The Francis doormat, brick surround, and ornamental grass planting along a bluestone step

The Project Brief

  • A custom-manufactured steel gate marking the entrance from street to courtyard
  • Layered plantings and natural materials throughout the courtyard
  • A sculptural water feature as a central courtyard focal point
  • Materials, colors, textures, and sightlines coordinated with the interior design team
  • Intimate gathering spaces designed for guests to pause and connect with the outdoors
Aerial view of a hotel courtyard with gravel patio, cafe seating, wire sculptures, and cottage garden planting

The Experience

A central focus of the design was the relationship between interior and exterior. GreenRoots worked closely with Riverwards General, the interior design team, throughout the process to ensure the landscape and interiors were considered as one cohesive experience, so the transition from inside to outside feels intentional and seamless.

The courtyard was designed not simply as an amenity, but as an extension of the hotel's interior experience: a place for guests to pause, gather, and enjoy a quieter connection to the outdoors. The custom steelwork, sculptural fountain, architectural planting, and intimate gathering spaces each contribute to the sense of character and discovery.

The result is a boutique hospitality experience that feels both elevated and deeply rooted in Kennett Square, bringing together landscape architecture, interior design, architecture, craftsmanship, and hospitality into a destination that gives something meaningful back to the community GreenRoots calls home.

Warmly lit entrance of the Francis Hotel with a golden wood door, gas lantern, gold feather wall sculpture, and lush container plantings of echinacea and coleus
Hotel courtyard at dusk with shasta daisies and coleus in the foreground, iron cafe seating on a gravel patio, and illuminated dark wood and brick building facades

Elevated, and deeply rooted in Kennett Square.

Low planting bed of yarrow, ornamental grass, and herbs at the base of cedar wood posts beside a granite step and gravel surface