As owners of the new Hampton Inn along the Illinois River in East Peoria celebrate the hotel’s “excellent start,” Mayor John Kahl says the development signifies another step in the city’s progress.
Dan Huber, co-owner and CEO of the Iowa-based Frontier Hospitality Group, says the 100-room hotel started welcoming guests about three weeks ago and business has been unbelievable so far.
“Our partnership with the City of East Peoria has always been one of our favorites. It’s one of the best city governments you can work with on a private-public partnership basis,” Huber said at a grand opening ceremony Thursday afternoon.
Frontier also operates the Holiday Inn Express near the Bass Pro Shops and the Residence Inn by Marriott at the corner of Altorfer Lane and Eastlight Court.
“The thing about Frontier is they do little things that maybe someone outside the hospitality industry wouldn’t actually recognize,” said Kahl. “Even the property we’re standing in isn’t a cookie-cutter Hampton Inn. There are touches in this hotel now that they took above and beyond what’s required by the brand to make it that much better.”
Huber said the project took more than three years to complete and cost “in excess of $20 million.” It keeps the Hampton brand in East Peoria after the 30-year-old location near the Par-A-Dice casino switched its flag.
“Replacing a Hampton Inn that had been in this market for many years and was leaving the system was an opportunity to reintroduce the brand immediately to a market that is accustomed to having a Hampton Inn,” said Huber.
Kahl said East Peoria always wanted to see something developed on what’s known as “lot 2” along Conference Center Drive, on the opposite side of the underpass beneath the Bob Michel Bridge from the Embassy Suites.
“We, as a city, in the last several years, have been very, very selective on what we want to see here as we continue to build out the Levee District and along the riverfront,” said Kahl.
“When these guys approached us, they wanted to be somewhere down near the Levee District, near the other two properties. We’re like, ‘How about this?’ and they’re like, ‘Are you kidding me? If you guys are serious, we’re on it.’ So it came together very quickly.”
Kahl said Par-A-Dice owner Boyd Gaming has purchased the former Hampton site, but he couldn’t provide details on what their plans for the property are. Boyd is moving forward with redevelopment of the casino property after adjusting plans to incorporate locating the gaming floor on permanently moored barges on the river.
Kahl similarly couldn’t get into specifics about plans to attract a new business into the vacant Granite City restaurant between the new Hampton and Logan’s Roadhouse on Conference Center Drive.
“We have been working really, really hard on a joint effort [with the East Peoria Chamber of Commerce] to bring something different here,” Kahl said during his ceremony remarks. “We can’t really disclose what we’re working on now, but it’s something that’s not here that I think would be a great fit.”
Kahl said East Peoria has “a lot of things going on” that showcase the city’s economic viability and growth, particularly noting the success of the recently opened residential side of the $66 million BluTowne mixed-use project next to City Hall as a major indicator.
“A lot of people questioned, ‘Really, rentals? You know, high-end luxury apartments? There’s no demand for that.’ Absolutely wrong. That place is almost filled already,” said Kahl, adding that developers Flaherty & Collins have committed to pursuing a second phase to the south along Center Street.
“It’s exciting to see a lot of residents down in this part of town now. You come down here in the evening, and you see folks out walking their dog, or just enjoying a nice stroll, going to the restaurants and the shops.”
