A hotel in downtown Moline has $2 million in upgrades, a new name, a new look and now is looking forward to new customers.
The Wyndham Moline on John Deere Commons, formerly the Radisson on John Deere Commons, was welcomed to the community during an afternoon ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday, June 30. About 100 visitors attended the event at the hotel, located at 1415 River Drive.
“We’re looking forward to continuing service to our current customers … and bringing in more customers,” Beth Esmoil, director of sales for the hotel, told the QCBJ during the event.
Ms. Esmoil added that some of the recent or planned updates at the hotel include repainting the exterior, upgrading the swimming pool area, new TVs and bedding in the rooms and other guest services.
Much of Thursday’s events centered around welcoming the rebranded hotel, which has been a mainstay business in downtown Moline for about 25 years, to the community.
“We can’t thank you enough for your investment in our community,” Moline Mayor Sangeetha Rayapati said during the ceremony.
She also thanked those visiting the city during this week’s John Deere Classic (JDC) golf tournament, and reminded guests of another big event on the horizon. Moline will host its own sesquicentennial celebration events during the week of Aug. 22-29.
Dave Herrell, president and CEO of Visit Quad Cities, said the new-look hotel is great news because it represents a major investment that will help the region.
“You are very special. You have made a long-term investment here,” Mr. Herrell told the crowd and company officials gathered Thursday. “We are excited about the future. There is momentum in the region.”
Several hotel officials also said how pleased they are about the future as the hotel’s business has been very strong since the rebranding in mid-June.
“We are excited about the future growth here in Moline and want to continue being a leader in the downtown community,” said Adrienne Pumphrey, vice president of sales and marketing for C-Two Hotels, which manages the property for owners The Amin Group.
The Amin Group decided to convert the Radisson into a Wyndham in early 2022 because of the loss of government bookings due to the Radisson brand being owned by Chinese company Jin Jiang International.
Ms. Pumphrey said up to 25% of the hotel’s bookings were previously made by travelers to the Rock Island Arsenal or other federal departments coming to the area. However, recent regulations forbade military and other federal government agencies from booking with Chinese-owned hotel properties, according to a news release from the company.
The Wyndham Moline on John Deere Commons is located near the riverfront, next to the TaxSlayer Center and Bass Street Chop House restaurant.
Wyndham is American-owned, Ms. Pumphrey said, meaning the hotel will again be able to return to hosting some of its best and preferred customers.