DoubleTree by Hilton Davenport
Post 90's gentrified historic hotel
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The DoubleTree by Hilton Davenport, formerly Radisson Quad City Plaza, is a 223-room hotel and convention center located at 111 E. 2nd Street in Davenport, Iowa. It features an open atrium lobby, waterfall lounge, indoor pool, fitness center, bar and in-house restaurant.
| DoubleTree by Hilton Davenport | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Former names | Quad City Plaza Hotel, Radisson Quad City Plaza |
| Hotel chain | DoubleTree by Hilton |
General information | |
| Status | Operating |
| Type | Hotel |
Architectural style | Postmodern |
| Location | 111 East 2nd Street, Davenport, Iowa, USA |
| Opened | October 6, 1995 |
| Cost | 19 million (1992 USD) |
| Owner | Hawkeye Hotels |
| Operator | First Hospitality |
| Height | |
| Top floor | 6 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 6 |
| Lifts/elevators | 2 |
| Design and construction | |
Architecture firm | John Q. Hammons Hotels |
| Other information | |
| Number of rooms | 223 |
Number of restaurants | 1 |
| Number of bars | 1 |
| Parking | Onsite or Connected via skybridge |
| References | |
| [1] | |
History
Design proposals were submitted in 1992 for a new hotel expansion to be connected to the Davenport RiverCenter and supplement the over-capacity Hotel Blackhawk.[2] John Q. Hammons Hotels LLC received approval for a new atrium-style hotel to have its own event space in addition to the RiverCenter existing space connected via skywalk.[2] Initially, Hammons Hotels LLC had a stake of over 80% into the project, with Iowa-Illinois Gas and Electric Co. (now MidAmerican Energy) and Lee Enterprises as limited partners.[2] Originally under the name of Quad City Plaza Hotel, it was joined with Radisson Hospitality Worldwide to become Radisson Quad City Plaza in 1995.[3] Unusual for the time, promotional CD's we created by Hammons Hotels LLC and distributed to local markets without any sales pitch, just ambiance sounds of a waterfall and light lounge music.[4]
At 7 PM, October 6, 1995, the Radisson Quad City Plaza opened with a ribbon cutting by then-current mayor of Davenport Pat Gibbs. The hotel had a complement of sauna/spa facility, gymnasium, pool, whirlpool, floral shop, restaurant and bar upon opening.[5] The Radisson welcomed numerous celebrities within its first year including King Carl and Queen Sylvia of Sweden, William Shatner, Richard Simmons, and Tiger Woods.[6] In addition to being connected to the RiverCenter complex, a riverboat casino by the name of 'President' was docked nearby and provided entertainment for guests for years. Originally a non-smoking property, the policy was rescinded in October 1996 for the in-house restaurant, Bistro on Brady, as guests consistently requested to partake.[7] John Q. Hammons Hotels LLC decided to buy out its partners for the hotel in 1997.[8] As part of a refresh for the new millennium, Bistro on Brady became Brady Street Chophouse and reinforced a non-smoking policy.[9]
Danny Holmes, the General Manager of the hotel since opening, led a collective effort of all lodging properties of the Quad Cities called the Hotel and Motel Association of the Quad Cities to encourage tourism to the metropolis.[10] The Radisson Quad City Plaza was nominated for the President's Award by Radisson Hotels in 2007 for the most top performing hotel among the chain's franchisees.[11] Another honor, being noted in Hospitality Magazine as the top hotel out of 250 recognized the same year.[12] The hotel's adjoining skybridge was prominently featured in the made-for-TV movie Megafault trailer.[13]
As time went on, the hotel experienced a high level of staff turnover which caused a lack of service in all departments. John Q. Hammons Hotels LLC sold the property to Atrium Hospitality. One memorable change was the restaurant became Cafe 111 (Cafe One Eleven).[14] After a brief tenure, the property was sold to Hawkeye Hotels.[15][16] By 2017, the mid-1990's decor and amenities were outdated and worn. With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawkeye Hotels decided to use the low occupancy for a complete overhaul to transform the hotel into a DoubleTree by Hilton.[17]