The Selma Times-Journal

History surrounds the St. James Hotel.

The design and architecture of the building, even the location makes it impossible to ignore its significance to the city.

Shane Anderson is now responsible for continuing the legacy of one of the most notable historic sites in the city.

A long-time veteran of the business, he is now making his roots in Selma as the new general manager of the St. James.

“I started working summers when I went to school,” Anderson said. “I liked it, and I stayed with it.”

Those summers during his time at Eisenhower College in Seneca Falls, N.Y., started a career that would take him throughout the South.

Anderson was most recently the assistant general manager at the Holiday Inn Atrium Plaza in Beaumont, Texas.

Prior to that, he was at the Embassy Suites in Montgomery for five and a half years.

“I’m familiar with Selma and the Alabama area,” Anderson said. “I really liked the (St. James) hotel, and I liked the area. I think its people and everything about it are exciting.”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been to upstate New York, but it is different down here. I enjoy it.”

Although he considers the service of the hotel now to be good, Anderson does not plan on standing pat.

“We have some challenges ahead of us, and we’re going to go ahead and work to improve all areas of the hotel,” he said.

The hotel was built in 1837 and still has many of its original features.

What initially draws guests to the St. James is the allure of laying their heads in a historical lodging in a historical city.

What keeps them coming back is the assurance they will have the type of stay they cannot receive anywhere else.

“This is a special boutique property,” Anderson said. “These are not cookie-cutter hotel rooms. It’s not like in big chain hotels. We offer individual service in a special atmosphere with an ambience others cannot offer.”