Bessemer council votes to study feasibility of potential hotel

By P.J. GLISSON

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Bessemer — At a special Monday evening meeting, the Bessemer city council voted to fund a feasibility study for a potential new hotel in the city.

According to city manager Charly Loper, the study will be paid with a $25,000 grant received from the Michigan Economic Development Commission.

In previous meetings, council members had discussed their desire to seek a hotel and restaurant complex, but Loper said a preliminary outreach determined that the funds will not cover a study of that magnitude.

Hence, Monday’s meeting was held to determine whether the council wished to explore options for either a hotel or a restaurant, rather than both.

“I think we’re all in agreement that we want and need both of them,” said mayor Adam Zak, regarding the desire for a hotel, as well as a restaurant. “I lean more to the hotel for a couple of reasons.”

First, the mayor said that special events in this region result in the area running out of lodging. When the Red Bull competition took place at Copper Peak last year, Zak said some people had to get hotels in towns as far as Minocqua, Wis.

In addition, said Zak, “Most people with families — they want a pool. They want Wi-Fi. AmericInn (in Ironwood) is the newest hotel, and it’s obviously the most popular.”

Mayor pro tempore Allen Archie initially leaned to studying the feasibility of a restaurant. “We’ve got two functioning motels right now that are struggling,” he said of already existing businesses on each end of the city.

Bluffs Inn is on the west side of town, and Traveler’s Motel is on the east side.

“Our challenge is population and age and infrastructure,” said council member Terry Kryshak, who said he doesn’t want to harm facilities already in business, but continued, “That’s one of the biggest complaints of people who come here.”

Loper said the city owns 60 acres directly west of Steiger’s, as well as a smaller plot of land near Abelman’s Clothing near the Bessemer City Hall downtown.

“It would be great if we got one downtown,” said Archie, who added, however, that the highway site suggests ease of use because travelers would not need to find the hotel.

Kryshak asked whether a feasibility study would address the potential success of different locations, and Loper assured that it would.

Despite voting to study how a hotel may fare in their locale, council members also expressed continued enthusiasm for a restaurant as well.

“I think we need a nice place to eat,” said council member Linda Nelson, who said she’d love to see a “huge hotel with a water park and a restaurant/lounge attached,” adding, “I think it would do really well.”

Since finances do not warrant that level of enterprise, Nelson said a restaurant that included conference room areas for other activities such as wedding showers also would be welcome.

Nelson and other council members agreed that a new restaurant likely would not have much impact on existing facilities. Moreover, she said, “If you have a good restaurant and you have good food, people are going to come.”

Zak said such business could follow later. “If you have the hotel, it’s easier for the restaurants to come, rather than the other way around,” he said.

The council will meet next on May 6 at 6 p.m. in the City Hall council room. The public is welcome.