Opened in 1912, the Hotel Utica was for decades the grandest address in central New York — a Beaux-Arts tower with a lobby full of marble columns, coffered ceilings, and brass fittings. It went through lean years along with the city and was fully restored in the early 2000s. The lobby is open to visitors and worth stepping into for the architecture even if you're not staying there.
The ballroom on the upper floors has been used for events since the restoration and retains its original detailing. The exterior is one of the better examples of early-20th-century commercial architecture surviving in upstate New York.