Investment brings hope to once-glamorous hotel

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By the Times Editorial Board | Tuesday, May 06, 2008 |

The Davenport hotel at the foot of the Government Bridge has had about as many names as exterior colors. In 44 years, it’s had its share of ups and downs, closings and reopenings. A recent report even promised a waterpark that never materialized.

Now, there is hope anew for a place that once had a modicum of upper-class, with new owners of the Riverside Plaza Hotel — last known as the Howard Johnson Plaza — promising $4 million in interior and exterior renovations.

We welcome the investment by Garden Hospitality, a group managed by Blue Ridge Hotels, based in Hebron, Ky. But count us among those concerned that this simply isn’t enough money to redo the struggling hotel.

“That is a superficial amount,” said Gene Meeker, Davenport alderman-at-large who has long been close to the business community. “I’d say it would take twice that amount. We need a classy place. It’s critical for downtown.”

A downtown businessman involved in tourism says the amount suggested for renovation is a drop in the bucket. He said $1 million would be needed just for new furniture in a six-story hotel like the Riverside Plaza.

“We really do need another good hotel,” said Danny Holmes, manager of the Davenport Radisson, just a few blocks away. “To attract conventions, trade shows and events, there just aren’t enough downtown rooms to go around.”

Other needed improvements to the hotel, in addition to long overdue maintenance, also could quickly eat up the new owners’ investment.

The high-rise building — which has operated as everything from a Best Western to a Clarion over the years — does not have a sprinkler system because they weren’t required when it was built in 1964. And, its large banquet hall on the second floor is not accessible by elevator.

It is uncertain whether the latest investment — nearly three times the original $1.4 million construction cost of the hotel — is enough to return the hotel to its glory days. But investment in downtown Davenport is worth celebrating, even when it’s short of ideal.

Clayton House

In its hey-day, the Riverside Plaza, then the Clayton House, was an “in” place to go. The manager was Stan Schiller, a promotion-minded fellow who made the most of the hotel’s facilities. It had the first indoor swimming pool in any Quad-City hotel, and there was another outside pool with a tiled terrace and plantings.

During its early years, the main restaurant — Dover Hall — had an English motif. In line with that theme, the owners used a right-hand-drive Rolls Royce Silver Cloud for a courtesy car.

National conventions were held at the Clayton House, along with class reunions and high school proms. Its big upstairs hall hosted weekly civic club meetings.

The original owners sold out in the late 1970s. Since then, the place has had an identity crisis. Its original stand-out white brick exterior with bold, blue tile trim is now a blah, desert-tan beige. The outside pool was filled with dirt a few years ago.