Duluth's Radisson hotel gets new life
The $3 million spent on the downtown Duluth Radisson in 2013 to replace the mechanical systems was one reason the Kaeding investment group bought the hotel last year for $8.2 million.
"It was a huge undertaking," said Chelsea Kaeding, who is part of the Bloomington-based ownership group.
Replacement of the hotel's heating and cooling, hot water and electric systems -- most dating back to the hotel's late-1960s construction -- came after the hotel's waterline broke, flooding the hotel's mechanical room, knocking out power and causing extensive damage.
The hotel at 505 W. Superior St. was closed for nearly three months while the work was done.
"That's investment dollars that the guests wouldn't see, but the guts of the building are brand new," Kaeding said.
The hotel lobby and restaurants also had been remodeled before the Kaeding investment group, acting as Duluth Hotel Ventures LLC, bought the hotel from New York-based Trinity Hotel Investors in April 2014.
But other areas of the once-premier hotel were outdated, especially the guest rooms, which hadn't been remodeled since the early 1990s.
Aiming to return the Radisson's Harborview hotel to its 1970s grandeur, the new owners plan to spend more than $4 million on renovations in the next six months.
At half the purchase price, it's a big investment.
Nostalgia has been a big driver not only in the renovations but in the company's decision to buy the Radisson.
Visitors to Duluth remember the hotel's distinctive circular tower, awesome views and rotating top-floor restaurant long after they leave. Kaeding and her husband, Carl, who are the hotel's managing owners, have heard stories -- lots of them -- about memorable experiences at the hotel in the 1970s and 1980s.
"It's an iconic hotel," Carl Kaeding said. "Everybody knows that hotel. Just mention it, and their mind's eye will goes right to that round building."
Besides remodeling the rooms and hallways, the banquet rooms will get new carpeting and wall coverings, the lobby's funky 1970s-style will be tweaked with the possible addition of a lobby bar. The pool will be refaced, the concrete sidewalks and parking surface redone. Valet parking to an off-site location will be added to relieve tight weekend parking.
For the Kaeding investment group, the Duluth Radisson is the second-largest of their eight hotels in Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. The largest is the Minneapolis Airport Crowne Plaza in Bloomington with 430 rooms. But the Duluth Radisson stands out as unique.
"Among our portfolio, this is our top-end boutique hotel," Carl Kaeding said.
Starting with the 15th floor, work on the first of the hotel's 268 rooms got underway about five weeks ago.
Each room is being gutted and redone, including new carpeting and vinyl wall coverings, draperies, furniture, light fixtures and appliances. Bathrooms are being transformed. Cordless telephones and smart stations are going in.
Besides the hotel tower's 200 rooms, the annex's 68 rooms also will be remodeled.
"Every room will have new everything, including all new furniture," Carl Kaeding said. "Every single thing that was in the room last year won't be in the room when we're done before the close of the year, down to the faucets and countertops."
"My goal when I design a room is to appeal to the masses," Kaeding said as she stood in the hotel's model room. "I want everybody to be comfortable in this room."
"Duluth has nothing like this," Chelsea Kaeding said. "It's very different. The Sheraton's beautiful. I would compare the quality to that. But this is very contemporary, down to the lounge chairs."
For rooms facing Lake Superior, the large image on the wall of the Aerial Lift Bridge at night echoes the view of the real thing that can be seen from the rooms.
"I love this hotel," Kaeding said. "I put my heart and soul into it."
As the hotel is part of a franchise, the Radisson company must approve the remodel. And it has, enthusiastically, she said.
The Radisson Hotel currently is a three-star hotel. But when the renovations wrap up next year, the goal is to become the hotel of choice among travelers to Duluth, General Manager Rhonda Hausman said.
"We're aiming for four stars," she said. "There are no four-star hotels in Duluth."
While Canal Park hotels are a big draw for leisure visitors, the Radisson -- on the edge of the downtown business district -- is convenient for business stays.
"There's a lot more going on downtown than recreation," Carl Kaeding said. "We're a great provider for business. We would love to be the No. 1 choice for business travelers. Canal Park is fun in the summer, but in winter, we're connected to the skywalk."
That connection currently is closed but will reopen when construction of the new Maurices Headquarters across the street is completed next spring
Reported by: TwinCities.com
"It was a huge undertaking," said Chelsea Kaeding, who is part of the Bloomington-based ownership group.
Replacement of the hotel's heating and cooling, hot water and electric systems -- most dating back to the hotel's late-1960s construction -- came after the hotel's waterline broke, flooding the hotel's mechanical room, knocking out power and causing extensive damage.
The hotel at 505 W. Superior St. was closed for nearly three months while the work was done.
"That's investment dollars that the guests wouldn't see, but the guts of the building are brand new," Kaeding said.
The hotel lobby and restaurants also had been remodeled before the Kaeding investment group, acting as Duluth Hotel Ventures LLC, bought the hotel from New York-based Trinity Hotel Investors in April 2014.
But other areas of the once-premier hotel were outdated, especially the guest rooms, which hadn't been remodeled since the early 1990s.
Aiming to return the Radisson's Harborview hotel to its 1970s grandeur, the new owners plan to spend more than $4 million on renovations in the next six months.
At half the purchase price, it's a big investment.
Nostalgia has been a big driver not only in the renovations but in the company's decision to buy the Radisson.
Visitors to Duluth remember the hotel's distinctive circular tower, awesome views and rotating top-floor restaurant long after they leave. Kaeding and her husband, Carl, who are the hotel's managing owners, have heard stories -- lots of them -- about memorable experiences at the hotel in the 1970s and 1980s.
"It's an iconic hotel," Carl Kaeding said. "Everybody knows that hotel. Just mention it, and their mind's eye will goes right to that round building."
Besides remodeling the rooms and hallways, the banquet rooms will get new carpeting and wall coverings, the lobby's funky 1970s-style will be tweaked with the possible addition of a lobby bar. The pool will be refaced, the concrete sidewalks and parking surface redone. Valet parking to an off-site location will be added to relieve tight weekend parking.
For the Kaeding investment group, the Duluth Radisson is the second-largest of their eight hotels in Minnesota, Iowa and Illinois. The largest is the Minneapolis Airport Crowne Plaza in Bloomington with 430 rooms. But the Duluth Radisson stands out as unique.
"Among our portfolio, this is our top-end boutique hotel," Carl Kaeding said.
Starting with the 15th floor, work on the first of the hotel's 268 rooms got underway about five weeks ago.
Each room is being gutted and redone, including new carpeting and vinyl wall coverings, draperies, furniture, light fixtures and appliances. Bathrooms are being transformed. Cordless telephones and smart stations are going in.
Besides the hotel tower's 200 rooms, the annex's 68 rooms also will be remodeled.
"Every room will have new everything, including all new furniture," Carl Kaeding said. "Every single thing that was in the room last year won't be in the room when we're done before the close of the year, down to the faucets and countertops."
"My goal when I design a room is to appeal to the masses," Kaeding said as she stood in the hotel's model room. "I want everybody to be comfortable in this room."
"Duluth has nothing like this," Chelsea Kaeding said. "It's very different. The Sheraton's beautiful. I would compare the quality to that. But this is very contemporary, down to the lounge chairs."
For rooms facing Lake Superior, the large image on the wall of the Aerial Lift Bridge at night echoes the view of the real thing that can be seen from the rooms.
"I love this hotel," Kaeding said. "I put my heart and soul into it."
As the hotel is part of a franchise, the Radisson company must approve the remodel. And it has, enthusiastically, she said.
The Radisson Hotel currently is a three-star hotel. But when the renovations wrap up next year, the goal is to become the hotel of choice among travelers to Duluth, General Manager Rhonda Hausman said.
"We're aiming for four stars," she said. "There are no four-star hotels in Duluth."
While Canal Park hotels are a big draw for leisure visitors, the Radisson -- on the edge of the downtown business district -- is convenient for business stays.
"There's a lot more going on downtown than recreation," Carl Kaeding said. "We're a great provider for business. We would love to be the No. 1 choice for business travelers. Canal Park is fun in the summer, but in winter, we're connected to the skywalk."
That connection currently is closed but will reopen when construction of the new Maurices Headquarters across the street is completed next spring
Reported by: TwinCities.com
