2 Thursday, October 10, 2024 BATTLE CREEK SHOPPER NEWS http://www.thebattlecreekshopper.com
SHELLY KEHRLE-SULSER
Executive Editor
Battle Creek’s iconic, downtown
hotel at Kellogg Arena, formerly the
McCamly Plaza Hotel, will open
as the DoubleTree by Hilton on
Thursday, Oct. 17 before holding a
public grand opening celebration on
Friday, Oct. 18 from 1-3:30 p.m.
Acquired by Battle Creek Unlimited
(BCU) in 2019, BCU now owns the
property under its 50 Capital Avenue
Development Corporation and the
newly renovated hotel will be operat-
ed and managed by 6PM Hospitality.
The celebration will include a rib-
bon cutting ceremony with the Battle
Creek Area Chamber of Commerce,
speakers and self-guided as well as
guided tours of the building.
It’s taken five years to get the reno-
vations completed after plans by theprevious owner fell through, lead-
ing to the building’s acquisition by
BCU to complete the project, said
Economic Development Specialist
Heather Ignash.
The 275-room hotel was designed
with state-of-the art amenities and
features in mind, from a live moss
wall to new restaurants – like Alloy
on the main level that the public can
enjoy whether they are guests of the
hotel or not – and the atrium event
space decorated with natural light,
local art from Ignash, Jaziel Pugh,
Emily Willard, Ryan Flathau and
Patrick Bush, and a jazzy ceiling cre-
ated with curvy lines.
“This will rotate,” said Ignash, “on
a yearly to 18-month basis. We’ll
have new artists coming in. I’ve
already got a list.”
A mural by David Eldred is also onthe wall.
“We wanted to give this community
you just can’t find in this market,”
said BCU Unlimited Vice President
Bridgette Jones about the modern,
cutting edge design features. “Having
the arena attached to the property,
that is unique in itself so let’s bring
these events, these concerts, let’s
bring things back to the arena and
have a premier hotel to attach that
to so that way we can get better acts
in town, and entertainment etc. Just
being that partner for them, that way,
they can attract that - yes, maybe
A-list performers, if that’s what the
market can support.”
“We wanted,” added Ignash, “it to
be an asset to not only the downtown
but to the community and also to our
business community as well. We get
a lot of business travel.”New DoubleTree by Hilton to hold grand opening celebration Oct. 18
A jazzy, sparkling new atrium on the Jackson Street side of the new DoubleTree
by Hilton can be used for wedding receptions and other gatherings and
events. (Shopper News photo by Shelly Kehrle-Sulser)The top floor view of Battle Creek from the 50 Beacon Lounge is one of
the highlights of the newly renovated DoubleTree by Hilton in the heart of
downtown Battle Creek. The public can tour the hotel Oct. 18 from 1-3:
p.m. (Shopper News photo by Shelly Kehrle-Sulser)BCU had originally hoped to open
the hotel in August.
“There was a delay with the pan-
demic,” explained Ignash, “which
created supply chain issues. For
instance, there are all new boilers, a
whole new system down in the base-
ment. There’s a whole, brand new
infrastructure down there.”
Although the hotel is not owned by
Hilton, the Hilton brand does require
various operating standards such as
the fitness center, first floor bar, pool
and other amenities.
The first feature guests will see at
the main Capital Avenue entrance is
the donor wall showcasing the com-
munity partnerships that made $
million of the $60 million renova-
tion possible, conducted by PioneerSee HILTON on 3CONTACT USEditor: Shelly Kehrle-Sulser
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