The Hilltop Inn: ‘People love the warmth of the place’

These are busy days for Chris Kretz and his new Davenport business – The Hilltop Inn of Davenport, located atop Brady Street hill in a historic house at 1527 Brady St. Mr. Kretz and his wife, Sue Ramsett, have been busy converting the 153-year-old home – located at the corner of Brady Street and Kirkwood […]

These are busy days for Chris Kretz and his new Davenport business – The Hilltop Inn of Davenport, located atop Brady Street hill in a historic house at 1527 Brady St. Mr. Kretz and his wife, Sue Ramsett, have been busy converting the 153-year-old home – located at the corner of Brady Street and Kirkwood Boulevard – into a place that will thrill guests with its history and charm. (The classic home was once known as the Bishop’s House, and more recently was the St. Ambrose University Alumni House.)

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The Hilltop Inn, which now is open for business, isn’t exactly a hotel or a bed-and-breakfast. He describes it as a “vacation home” and “special event venue” that has hosted groups looking for a special place to gather, celebrate and have fun. (Go here to get rental information on The Hilltop.) “They love it here. We try to make it comfortable, not like a museum. …People love the warmth of the place,” Mr. Kretz told the QCBJ on Tuesday, June 25. He added that The Hilltop “technically, just opened” for business. So far, The Hilltop Inn has hosted a few groups. Not long ago, for instance, the inn hosted 14 members of a family who were in town for a funeral. They used the classic home as a gathering space and a place to have fun. The family held a murder mystery game within the home during their stay in Davenport. In the coming weeks, there will be a lot more activities at The Hilltop, also located in the heart of the Hilltop Campus Village (HCV). A ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held soon, and Mr. Kretz hopes to attract guests for two major upcoming events – the John Deere Classic golf tournament and the Quad-City Times Bix 7 road race. In fact, on Tuesday, he had four old church pews on the home’s front porch that may be used by guests who want to sit and watch the Bix 7 race go by at the end of July. Also, in the coming weeks, Mr. Kretz hopes to start attracting overnight guests to the vintage home. News of the Hilltop Inn’s opening has already made a positive impact with its HCV neighbors. Brian Kramer, executive director of the HCV, is enthusiastic to see the new meeting venue. "The Hilltop is really excited about the Hilltop Inn and this added amenity to the neighborhood.  When a large historic property like the Bishop's House (Hilltop Inn) comes on the market, one wonders who will purchase it and what their plans will be.  In this case, Chris and Sue already have a strong and positive relationship with the neighborhood and were very transparent with their plans to reopen the Bishop's House into the Hilltop Inn and have opened their doors – when they can – to build interest.  We are excited that this amenity will support Palmer College, St. Ambrose University, and it will create a unique event venue for large events and weddings,” Mr. Kramer said in an email message to the QCBJ. The journey to turn the home into that unique event venue began last November when St. Ambrose approached Mr. Kretz and Ms. Ramsett about buying the home. St. Ambrose leaders made them a great offer because of the couple’s reputation of restoring classic homes, Mr. Kretz said. Since that time, the two have been busy completing a wide variety of big and small jobs on The Hilltop Inn. Some of those jobs have included fixing up the bathrooms, preparing bedrooms ready for guests, bringing in old furniture and much more. “You can’t really look at everything in here at once because there is so much to see,” he added. Some of The Hilltop Inn’s details include: 

• Built in 1871 and is of Italianate style architecture.

• The house spans about 8,300 square feet.
• Interior space includes: 10 bathrooms, seven bedrooms, six decorative fireplaces, three sitting rooms, two dining rooms and a full kitchen. (Eventually, the seven bedrooms will have formal names. Now, they have numbers on the bedroom doors.)
• The house is loaded with original woodwork, stained glass, marble fireplaces, parquet floors and many antique attractions including old tables, chairs and beds.
• Mr. Kretz continues to make updates, renovations and repairs to the house. For instance, he is converting an old piano that is broken beyond repair into a bar back for one of the sitting rooms. That room will then be converted into a “gathering room” for wine tastings and other events.

The old house also has offered several presents and surprises for its new owners. Mr. Kretz said he has discovered many old treasures in the basement, including marble covers for radiators, old mirrors and antique tables. Also, when features in the home were broken, past owners put them in the basement instead of throwing them away. That has been a great help to Mr. Kretz as those broken items can be used as templates to create new items for the home. Many parts of the home are covered with old photos and art that Mr. Kretz has discovered at local sites, such as art dealers and thrift stores.  But not all the art and photos are antiques. Mr. Kretz also has been rescuing old, ornate frames from stores and putting new photos created with new technology in them. For instance, a wall by the house’s main staircase is covered with new photos in old frames. The photos are of Mr. Kretz, his wife and son – and have been created through an artificial intelligence (AI) program that makes them appear to be portraits from long ago. One photo has Mr. Kretz in a black top hat and coat, and Ms. Ramsett, who is KWQC-TV vice president and general manager, appears to be in a portrait from a century ago. “We tell our family members that if they visit, they can also have their photo on the wall,” he said. But for all the many features and items that are now in The Hilltop Inn, much more is coming. Mr. Kretz said the house is still very much a work in progress with many projects still in the planning stages. Some of those projects include repairing flooring and pocket doors, matching the stain on all the woodwork around the house, replacing tile around the fireplaces and much, much more. One of the major projects Mr. Kretz said he eventually wants to tackle is to replace the cupola – also called the observation tower – on top of the home’s third story. That cupola has been missing for decades. But he has a photo of the house when it had that top structure and will use the old photo to build a new cupola. All that future work will take time – perhaps another two years. “And that two years might be a lofty goal. It might take three or four years. … Your viewpoint on this house definitely changes when it turns into a business,” he added.