End of an era: Oceanfront's Belvedere Hotel demolished

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — It was a throwback to a different time along Virginia Beach's Oceanfront.

Built in 1969, the Belvedere Hotel evoked a time when hotel resorts along the water were smaller, and often family-owned. 

But after years of an uncertain future, the five-story Belvedere will live on only in memory as the building was demolished this week.

There'd been talk of razing the hotel since 2015. The cozy Belvedere Coffee Shop and Diner that operated out of the building closed last year, and earlier this week, the Belvedere was used one final time -- for training exercises for the Virginia Beach Fire Department as parts of the building were set on fire.

A high rise can eventually be expected to rise in the Belvedere's place.

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Back in 2015, 13News Now meteorologist Craig Moeller paid the Belvedere Coffee Shop a visit to see what made it a hidden hot spot along the Oceanfront:

And here is video showing fire training exercises, days before its demolition: