History of the Park Hotel in Richland Center, Wisconsin

In June of 1851, Ira S. Haseltine hired Robert Field to survey what became the original plat of Richland Center. Mr. Haseltine built a dam across the Pine River at the west end of Court Street were he operated a sawmill and later a gristmill.

By 1870, the town was an industrious hub of activity. There was quite a number and variety of stores from dry good and millinery to drug and jewelry. Also services from flour and feed mills, doctors and dentists to cabinetmakers, harness shops and a blacksmith. In 1877, the village board ordered a plank sidewalk to be laid across the east side of Seminary Street. Other than that civic improvement, little had changed in town from the days when cattle, hogs, an occasional oxen, and sheep owned by Ira Haseltine himself could be found roaming the streets of Richland Center.

“In the early days, Richland Center was without a hall suitable for any large public gatherings. The Presbyterian Church was frequently used, but only for gatherings deemed proper by the Church. The dining room at Hook’s Hotel could be cleared of tables and used as a dance floor, but still was not suitable for large public gatherings.” (Republican Observer, 4/25/1940)

In 1869, the International Order of Odd Fellows decided they needed a building of their own for meetings and dances, which they particularly enjoyed. A three story, 24 by 50 foot brick building was designed at an estimated cost of $3,000 to $4,000. The first floor would be used as a mercantile establishment, the second floor for public meetings, and the third floor as the lodge’s meeting room.

In 1873, following four years of fund raising, the Odd Fellows began construction. Unfortunately, for the lodge member, Mother Nature stuck her two cents worth into the project with a severe storm. It so damaged the unfinished building as to make it beyond the means of the Odd Fellows to complete the project. They reluctantly sold the damaged structure to D.O. Chandler and W.D. Ross, local businessmen, who by 1874 completed the construction and converted it into a hotel.

The Park Hotel was a quality structure and pleasing to the eye. The three-story building was surrounded by an iron picket fence, topped with a square cupola, and a small balcony. (Richland Observer, 10/19/67) It received its name by virtue of its location across from the beautiful park surrounding the courthouse. J.W. Smith became the first proprietor of the Park Hotel, leaving a similar job at Hook’s Hotel, a competing establishment. (It would appear that corporate ladder climbing did not begin with Wall Street!)

“In December of 1874, when the building was completed, all the folks in Richland Center were invited to join the party on opening night. A fine supper and music to dance to were provided for the fee of $2.00 a couple. It was quite a party and was well attended by what would be called the dudes and belles of the town.” (Republican Observer, 4/25/1940)

In 1874, Richland Center was linked to the outside world via telegraph. Mr. Charles Towley, the telegraph operator in Lone Rock, Wisconsin, backed the project. Mr. Towley sold tickets or shares called “franks” to local merchants in order to finance the project. The first message was received in town on August 1, 1874. For a short time, the telegraph office was in Burnham’s drug store but was later moved to the Park Hotel. In 1877 the cost of sending a ten word message to Milwaukee was 30 cents and to Chicago 60 cents.

1877 was also the year that J.W. Smith left the Park Hotel to open a meat market. C. Tryon became the new proprietor.

Early in the new century, George Miller and Frank Poynter installed a bathtub in their barbershop even before the Park Hotel had one. It was used largely by traveling salesmen and other male patrons of the local hotels. In the late 1880s, the city financed a water works project. Prior to that date, water for homes and businesses came from private wells and cisterns that caught rainwater. This was surely a great improvement for the growing town. Not only did it have a positive effect on fire safety and health, but also it made it possible for the hotels to offer bathing facilities to their clients.

In 1894, the town built a new court house/jail/county seat building. The crowning touch was a beautiful clock, which sounded out the hours. For several decades, guests staying on the West side of the Park Hotel got their wake-up call from this clock rather than a pleasant knock at the door.

The Park Hotel was one of the first large, commercial buildings in town to be lighted by electricity. By May of 1894, the hotel had lights in all its rooms. At 12 cents a kilowatt-hour, the power was supplied by a rather noisy odiferous 125 h.p. engine and two generators owned by George Strang. Power was not supplied around the clock. The night schedule differed according to the hours of sunset, cloud cover and the cycle of the moon. If the moon was new or the evening cloudy, the lights stayed on all the way to midnight.

Despite the fact that the hotel was doing quite well financially between 1883 and 1902, the hotel had several owners, and often-in rapid succession. The following people were listed as owners/operators during this time; C.W. Slocum, J.E. Smith & Son, George Hesen, P.l. Breuer, John Craigo, W.H. Pier, the Stoddard Brothers (who traded the hotel for a gristmill in Minnesota), E.O. Fosgate and A. Dickerson.

In 1899 owner W. Kirsh did some extensive remodeling to the original structure. The earliest photo of the Park Hotel shows that is was a frame building sitting at street level. Photographs after 1899 show a completely refurbished building. The remodeling included moving the building back from the street and placing it atop a stone basement. This basement served two important functions, it offered support to the new brick facing and enlarged the potential useable area of the hotel. It was during this excavation that the before mentioned tomahawk was discovered.

Close examination of the 1899 photos show that Kirsh replaced the original cupola and balcony. He used the ironwork from the cupola as a railing around the basement stairs. At this time, two towers were added. The stone work included a “Richardson” arch above the second floor door, treform arch-type windows in the third floor, five arched brick friezes with a stone cornice at the roof line, and three stacked bay windows to the South topped by a mansard cupola. The two top windows had beveled glass.

Mr. McKy purchased the newly refurbished hotel for the incredibly low sum of $17,000. The following year Mr. McKy took ownership of the livery next door. When Mr. McKy moved to Oregon in 1905, C.R. Willey took his place at the hotel. Mr. Clarence Hamilton soon moved into that spot, leaving his former position at the Mitchell House. A salvaged receipt from November 15, 1907, shows that Mr. Hamilton was already at the Park Hotel while still finishing business at the Mitchell House. The receipt reflects payment for lunches and suppers that were provided to juries in April and September of that year. The cost of the meals was 25 cents and 35 cents per juror. Thirteen people were fed at each meal so one might assume that some official of the court or the sheriff accompanied them to keep them from discussing the cases in public.

The coming of the railroad had a positive effect on the patronage of the hotels in Richland Center. Sales men now came to town via the branch line bringing their samples in heavy trunks. Some stores still famous today and some no longer doing business, sent their salesmen out with the highest quality merchandise – (Marshall) Fields, Carson Pire (& Scott), Hart, Shaftner & Marks are some we all recognize.

The salespersons that came to the Park Hotel stayed for several days to a week. They rented space in the basement where they would display their product samples, whether dry goods, hardware, linens, drugs, or perhaps ready-made clothing. The salespersons also hired buggies and traveled to stores in nearby communities, returning to the hotel at night.

When the railroad made its appearance in Richland Center in 1876, it opened up the town for new businesses and services. One of those services was that of expanded medical treatment. Many legitimate and perhaps not-so-legitimate practitioners of the art of medicine came to town via the train on a regular schedule. They came from all over the Midwest-Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, and Minnesota-as well as from Madison and Milwaukee. There were specialists and general practitioners, dentists, and optometrists. Many of them setting up temporary offices in the lower level of the Park Hotel. There is no evidence that the local doctors suffered a lack of patients because of these traveling M.D.s, for there was a wealth of accidents, physical infirmities and poor nutrition in rural Wisconsin well into the twentieth century.

Women’s suffrage and temperance were very vivid issues in Richland Center. Churchwomen had been working for the banishment of liquor sales long before Richland Center become a chartered city. In 1887 when the Common Council drew up a charter to incorporate Richland Center into a city, there were three amendments included. They dealt with the issue of women’s right to vote, permission for liquor stores in town and the authority of the mayor to call up a militia if necessary in times of trouble. When David G. James presented the charter to the state legislature, all three amendments had to be removed before it would be approved.

The connection between temperance and the women’s vote was a constant problem. Some men felt, if women were given the right to vote, the decision regarding the sale of liquor would go to the temperance ticket. In 1887 Mary McKy, whose husband would later own the Park Hotel, was elected president of the local W.C.T.U. One wonders if her influence on Mr. McKy kept the hotel dry during their ownership. Margaret Scott also reported that Col. George Joachim, owner of the Park Hotel from roughly 1915 to 1937, had been observed marching in temperance parades. He never allowed alcohol to be served in the hotel during his tenure. During the next several decades, until the town went “wet” in 1986, temperance was a political “Item”.

Ada James the famous women’s suffragist and strong temperance worker grew up in Richland Center. Throughout her life, she worked for the establishment of welfare for the indigent, helpless children and women in particular. Her diaries contained references to meetings with judges, lawyers, and co-workers over dinner at the Park Hotel, especially in the 1920s and 1930s. Her perception of the economic dependency of women within society and the impact that alcohol had on the behavior of many a husband led her to a strong supporter for the dissemination of birth control information to women and the elimination of saloons in the county. “When economics no longer plays a role in a woman’s decision to marry, there will be an end to abusive husbands.” (James’ diary collection, box 28.) One cannot help but envision this outspoken woman planning and creating strategies in the dining room of the Park Hotel. She was a highborn woman from a prominent family who carried herself confidently and was not afraid to speak her mind to any one. Nor was she above sidestepping the law if she felt it was in the best interest of a helpless individual.

Although autos had become more common-one no longer made the local news just by purchasing one. The roads out of town were in sad shape. All too often disappointed car owners had to leave Ol’ Betsy home and travel by train. Riding a train was not an enjoyable experience. Train cabins were heated and lighted with kerosene, and the stations were quite cold in the winter. In 1927, there was a bus from the Park Hotel to Lone Rock, which took passengers to the morning trains. It returned to Lone Rock to carry homebound passengers back to Richland Center, usually by midnight. This bus was actually a long, eight-passenger car driven by David Landphier.

Mr. R.G. Nuss purchased the Park Hotel from Oliver Grant in 1911. Not only was Mr. Nuss a gracious landlord, but he was also a civic leader. Upon completion of the Auditorium and theater, Mr. Nuss served as business manager traveling all the way to Chicago to contract the best and most up to date entertainment in the Midwest.Clubs for dancing were also popular through these decades. Dances were held in the private dining room. Dinner would be served and music would follow. These dance clubs met once a month. The cost was around $15.00 a year and included a three-course meal.

In the early 1920s, there were many parties in the hotel, especially card parties. During the day, tables would be set up for bridge. The women used the occasion to dress in fancy attire. There were creative invitations and paper mache decorations on the 17 to 20 tables. This custom of hosting bridge parties, during the day for women and in the evening for couples, carried on for many decades.

The good Colonel was not through with the hotel. In 1930 he again called in contactors and had further remodeling and construction done to the building. On March 5, 1930, the Republican Observer ran another long article on the hotel.

The following are excerpts from that article:

A four-story 36 by 50-foot addition is to be built on to the Park Hotel, and the contract for the building has been let to Vogle Brothers, Madison contractors. Ed Tough, Madison architect, drew the plans.

The new addition will be built to the east of the present structure and will front on Seminary St. It will be of fireproof brick and tile construction, and will harmonize with the present hotel in appearance, and connect with it on each floor.

 The basement will be occupied by a modern laundry. On the First floor, a new dining room will connect to the present dining room with accordion doors. It will furnish more space for the regular guests of the hotel, but it can be closed off for parties and clubs. (The new dining room) will have a terrazzo floor and will be well lit and ventilated. Occupying the balance of this floor to the east of the dining room will be a modern apartment.

 The second and third floors will each have eight modern rooms, every room with a terrazzo-floored bathroom. Architect Tough tells Mr. Joachim that no hotel from St. Paul to Chicago will offer nicer rooms than their 16 rooms will be in the Park Hotel.

The plumbing and heating contract has been let to Klinzing and Banker of the city. The cost of the new addition complete will be about $28,000; it will give the Park Hotel 60 rooms and 68 beds. The new addition this year will give the city as fine a hotel as can be expected in a town of this size and much better than towns much larger than Richland Center boast. We must congratulate Col. Joachim and the city on his enterprise at this time.

Mr. Charles W. Gillingham, a 90-year-old resident of Richland County, was the operator of the excavation machinery for this remodeling. He recalls that the digging scoop of his tractor grazed the bottom of the wall of the original 1873 structure. The wall moved and buckled slightly. Mr. Gillingham, fearing that the wall could possibly collapse and being a prudent man, leaped from his machine and took off like the proverbial bat. By calling the building contactor’s attention to the weakened wall, Mr. Gillingham was able to save the structure from further damage. The wall was braced and a proper foundation was placed under that section of the building before the work continued.

Colonel Joachim and Dr. D. Smith (who practiced dentistry in Richland Center in the 1920s) later begin the movement to create a golf course and club. This very same golf club became today’s country club and for a time was a source of competition to the dining room of the Park Hotel.

PARK HOTEL IS SOLD MONDAY TO ROY SCOTT

Well-known hostelry passes from ownership of Col. George Joachim who has controlled property for twenty-three years.

 By the terms of a transaction  that took place in the city Monday, Roy Scott become the owner of the Park Hotel, the local business enterprise he has operated under lease for the past six years. Mr. Scott purchased the Park Hotel from Col. Joachim, the latter having owned the property for a period of 23 years, seventeen of which he was in active charge, and during which time he built the institution up to such a point that is was rapidly gaining a wide and favorable reputation. Mr. Scott has proven a worthy successor as a hotel man who had endeared himself to the citizens of the community.

 Mr. and Mrs., Scott came to the city from Janesville in June of 1931, having gained previous experience operating a hotel in that city, their ability as proprietors of the Park Hotel and their willingness to shoulder their just share of civic duties in Richland Center has won for them the admiration and friendship of many in the community, and their purchase of the business will meet with widespread approval.

Mr. Scott lobbied for Highway 14 to be constructed through Richland Center. He was the Mayor of the town at this time and was very interested in the economic prosperity of the business district. It is no wonder that the town applauded his new ownership of the hotel.

The hotel was for decades known as the best eating establishment in Southwest Wisconsin. One of the secrets of this reputation was the private garden, which a couple of the landlords cultivated. The garden grew on property owned by Keith Brewer and was on the corner where the IGA store used to stands. Both Col. Joachim and Mr. Scott grew lettuce, beans, tomatoes, beets, and cucumbers that were pickled or cured in gallon jars in the hotel. It was believed that some of the first zucchini and brussell sprouts eaten in Richland Center came from this garden. Most of the other groceries came from Porkorney’s Market on Court Street. Poultry was butchered on the premises, packed, and frozen in the hotel. According to Charlotte Evans, Mr. Scott would drive out into the country to buy the best chickens, ducks, and turkeys he could find. This resulted in the finest quality and flavor available from a commercial eating establishment.

Two famous guests who graced the dining room of the Park Hotel in the 1920-30s were Evan Williams, famous violinist of the Chicago Repertory, and Frank Lloyd Wright, architect. Charlotte Evans recalls one afternoon when Mr. Wright came to the hotel for lunch, which was something he did often. This was a particularly hot summer day before air conditioning made its appearance. A large fan was operating in the dining room cooling the room as best it could. Mr. Wright accompanied by several of his underlings positioned himself at a table directly in front of this large fan and proceeded to demand that it be turned off as it was blowing too hard upon his neck. The dutiful waitress turned off the fan but was soon cornered by her boss who instructed that it be turned back on. “There are more people in this room than that man. He can find another table that will suit him better”, was the response of Clayton Reynolds. When the waitress started up the fan, again, Frank L. Wright, indignant from what he perceived to be a snub, marched out of the hotel, his long white hair streaming behind him and his “yes men” close at his heels. None of the patrons or staff was too upset about neither his performance nor his exit.

In 1945, a year after he had purchased the hotel, Clayton Reynolds hired Bernal Coy to run the front desk and act as assistant manager. Mrs. Evans was now running the Western Union office located on the main floor. When Mr. Coy was elected to the office of County Clerk in 1959, Charlotte expanded her area of work and expertise to the front desk as well.

Clayton Reynolds began his career at the Park Hotel in the 1930s when he was a student at the Normal School. His job as bellhop and later as clerk gave him needed spending money and valuable experience. After spending some time teaching in rural schools, Clayton, now a married man, returned to the hotel to work full-time for Roy Scott. Clayton and Norma lived upstairs in the east addition of the hotel, the wing near the bakery. This space was formerly used to house unmarried waitresses and chambermaids employed during Col. Joachim’s tenure.

It was 1944, following the retirement of Roy Scott, when Clayton Reynolds took over ownership of the hotel. The Reynolds family consisted of Mr. Reynolds, raised in Crawford County, Mrs. Norma (Anderson) Reynolds who grew up in the Five Points area, and baby Cathy.

Jane joined the family in 1949 to make a happy foursome. They now took up residence in the south wing of the building, on the first floor, which Col. Joachim had remodeled for himself in 1926. The apartment had two bedrooms and a lovely fireplace that they greatly enjoyed. Numerous family photos show the girls in front of the hotel’s main entryway. The wild array of lovely flowers and the lush climbing vines along the porch attest to the green thumb, pride, and hours of work that Mrs. Reynolds put into the appearance of the building.

There is much evidence that Senator John F. Kennedy, soon to become President Kennedy, did make a stop at the Park Hotel. The date was October of 1959. He appeared along with his wife Jackie and several members of his future presidential staff at a tea in his honor. The Republican Observer (10/1/59) had quite a lengthy article including some of the future presidential ideas on the economy. The following March, Kennedy’s sisters, Mrs. R.S. Schriver (Eunice), Mrs. Peter Lawford (Pat), and Mrs. Steven Smith (Gene) were guests at a reception held at the hotel. The sisters were hot on the campaign trail on behalf of their brother.

Joe Koelsch had the opportunity to interview all the Kennedy clan while they were in Richland Center. He said that if ever one had an image of the perfect prince and princess; flawless, poised, congenial, gracious and impeccably dressed, Jack Kennedy and his wife Jackie fit the picture perfectly. The Kennedy sisters who came in March were true down-to-earth people according to Joe. They had a tremendous sense of humor and were easy to talk with, never alluding to their family’s wealth or status. The sisters had just arrived at the Park Hotel and were being escorted to the room where the reception was to be held when they decided to rest on the couch in the hallway. When the ladies all sat down at once, the couch collapsed, letting them sink all the way to the floor. Rather than becoming distressed or indignant over the embarrassing situation they burst out laughing and could hardly contain themselves. With some assistance from Mr. Koelsch and others, the women were escorted to a more substantial piece of furniture.

The death of Clayton A. Reynolds, 49, owner of the Park Hotel, and one of Richland Center’s most prominent businessmen Thursday morning, almost paralyzed business activity by the impact of its unexpectedness.

Reynolds became ill as he sat down to eat breakfast and after the doctor reached him, he was taken by ambulance to the hospital, where death followed only minutes later. He had attended Lenten worship services the evening before, and then had spent the night relieving the regular desk clerk on his weekly night off. He had had no previous warning of a heart ailment. Reynolds had been associated with the Park Hotel since high school days when he began working as a bellhop, and at the time he purchased the hotel in November, 1944, when his former employer, Roy Scott, retired, he had been assistant manager for 14 years.

Born in Crawford County, he came here to attend school and graduated from the Richland Center high school in 1929 and from the Richland County Teachers’ College the following year. After teaching in the county for a year, he began working full time at the hotel.

March 28, 1936, he was married to Norma Anderson at Five Points. They have two daughters, Cathy and Jane.

Cathy helped her mother as much as she could during the seven years that Norma retained control of the hotel. Mrs. Reynolds worked very hard to keep the hotel running. The lack of bus tours primarily due to faster cars and the interstate systems caused a slackening in the cafeteria business. Lack of a liquor license also kept many prospective patrons away, especially when the town limits were gerrymandered (went around businesses) to accommodate other nearby establishments which were, by virtue of being outside the city limits, allowed to serve drinks to their customer. The evening dining crowed continued to diminish even while Norma worked tirelessly to change the liquor laws in the town. Norma Reynolds finally sold the Park Hotel to corporation know as The Park Hotel, Inc.

The condition of most small town hotels began to deteriorate at about the same time. The development and later improvement of the interstate highways, the speed, and convenience of automobile travel, the deterioration of the nation’s railroad, and the changing patterns of everyday life brought on by the communications industry all helped to accelerate the decay of small towns and their magnificent hotels. Vacationing close to home became a thing of the past with the speed of auto travel. A family with only a week to spend could be in another part of the Mid-West in several hours and still have days to spend playing. More often than not, this was in a large city or resort area with numerous attractions and creative advertising. The transition away from an agrarian economy to an industrial and service oriented economy forced many children to leave their rural communities and seek jobs in the large cities. This phenomenon is still in progress today.

Mr. Coyle, a carpeting dealer from Madison and primary member of The Park Hotel, Inc., reportedly decided to buy the hotel because he had word that the next vote on liquor sales in Richland  Center was bound to go “wet”. With a reputable restaurant as part of the building, he felt that he would be a prime candidate for a liquor license. Coyle hired Don Cramer, who had managed Madison’s Nakoma Country Club’s food service, to run the Park’s dining rooms. Many local residents still remember the fine meals they enjoyed at that time, including the 99 cent Friday fish fry and $3.29 Sunday buffet.

When the 1969 vote went “dry” again, Mr. Cramer is reported to have been seen on the porch of the hotel loudly announcing his disgust for the voters of the town. The disappointed Coyle bought out the rest of the corporate partners, closed the restaurant, sold the equipment, and started converting the upstairs rooms into apartments. The dining room area became rented commercial space including Coyle-Hiltbrand Carpeting. Bob Hiltbrand ran the carpeting store in the hotel from 1970-1980. He managed the hotel and apartments in the building in exchange for cash rent for the carpet store space. For a while, Hemispheric Travel out of Madison and a vacuum cleaner dealer rented space in the building. Monthly rents while Hiltbrand managed the hotel were about $120 per month for an efficiency apartment. Nightly rentals stopped in about 1970. Most of the monthly renters were elderly people, but other low-income tenants also rented rooms. According to Mr. Hiltbrand, the hotel was clear at the low end of rental units. Hiltbrand bought the carpet business from Mr. Coyle in 1971 and in February of 1976, the building was sold to John Swinburn. Mr. Swinburn in turn sold the building to a Mr. Mishlove in April of 1976 and in August of 1980, it changed hands again. During this time, each successive seller accrued an unusually high profit.

Mr. and Mrs. Phil Boise took over ownership of the building in 1980. They had obtained a mortgage and applied for local Block Grant funds to finance their restoration for rental units. Mr. Boise, originally from Vermont, had gained considerable experience renovating Victorian houses. Diane, a native of Wisconsin, said the pair had spent two years searching for a suitable building. They also went to the effort of consulting the State Historical Society in order to keep their restoration compatible with the architecture of the 1899 building. 

In September 1981, a fire damaged the building; especially the remnants of the original 1874 structure and the second and third floors were extensively damaged by smoke and water. Mr. and Mrs. Boise were waiting to hear from their insurance adjuster with the intention to continue the work. Then they got word that the city was withdrawing its offer of the $80,000. The Boise’s puzzled over the denial of a loan they were counting on, filed a claim against the city for $80,000 in damages. Their attorney, Gregory Paradise, said, “We’d like to deal with the city and see if something can be worked out, but the city has kept silent on the matter. I think they’ve been used by the city so that the city can get the HUD money.” (Richland Observer; 10/8/82) Evidently, the Boise’s lost their suit, defaulting on their then numerous mortgages and left the area. The plan to reverse the blighting effect of a vacant building came to a halt.

It was early in 1985 when Neighborhood Housing Services began to take a serious look at the Park Hotel. Neighborhood Housing Services is an organization run by a board of directors whose goal is to clean up deteriorated neighborhoods and provide housing especially for the elderly. The board gave its director David Harris permission to devote staff time to do a feasibility study on the building. Because the County Housing Authority had lost a considerable sum of money on the Boise’s, it could not be of financial assistance to David. Wisconsin partnership For Housing Development was able to help and later provided enough money to hire an architect to draw up plans for a renovation. The University of Wisconsin-Madison provided students majoring in Economics and Business to do more feasibility studies as well as documenting the need for additional senior citizen housing in the county.

There was no way, from a private investor’s point of view, that the Park Hotel could have been made into anything but a parking lot without losing money. The private sector, as the studies showed, could not-would not make any profit from the venture, and after all, that is what investing is all about. It was up to N.H.S. now to convince government funding agencies that this was a worthwhile project and hope they would come up with the needed capital. At the same time, David was trying to arrange the purchase of the property from the bank which took over the mortgage when the Boise’s defaulted, Anchor Savings and Loan, Madison. This process took twelve months during which time the bank was more than willing to sell the property to another party at a higher price. This party had plans to destroy the building, not restore it. These were anxious times for David. Balancing the negotiations of the purchases, writing grants to get money for continuation of the planning process and dealing with people who either thought it shouldn’t be or couldn’t be done was no easy chore. There were also some criticisms made through the local paper in the spring of 1987. These letters to the editor claimed that the construction contract went to outside bidders and the local electricians, roofers, etc., were not allowed to earn money from the project. These statements were proven to be in error, and in fact, most of the laborers working for the outside contractors were local people.

The Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority allocated $50,000 in grant money and Richland Center was able to restore to the project the $80,000 HUD money that had been earmarked for the Park Hotel back in 1981. In 1986, WHEDA promised to loan more money to the project. The director of this organization is an appointee of the Governor of Wisconsin. When Governor Thompson took office, he appointed his own man to this position, replacing the former director. This new director proceeded to challenge some of the prior proposed allocations, among them the offer of a $750,000 loan to the hotel project. Thanks to the support that David Harris received from such people as Congressman Steve Gunderson, Senator Richard Kreul, Attorney Edward Leineweber, Mayor Darlo Wentz, The Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp., and others. David was able to convince WHEDA to honor its former proposal. The project was saved from a twelfth-hour death and construction began.

David Harris contracted Patricia Micetic of Richland Architects, Inc. in 1985 for drawing plans for the restoration of the building. Ms. Micetic called in Mead and Hunt Engineering of Madison to obtain structural assessments and assistance in the designing of the floor plan. The finished plans proved to include many interesting features making use of the unique shape and design of the building. Even the selection of window treatments, colonial profiled or contoured windows, was meant to enhance the blending of the modern restoration with the original brick veneer.

The area that needed the most reconstruction was on the East side of the building where the elevator is to be located. The method of construction used when the hotel was originally built is called balloon framing. The upright beams, which support the building, go from the foundation to the top floor rather than only the height of one floor with sill plates in between, as is commonly done today. With this type of construction, the sheathing is one very important element offering stability and strength to the wall. Unfortunately, the sheathing was damaged in the fire of 1981 and had to be removed completely necessitating the razing of the whole wall at that location. The visual effect this had from the sidewalk was that one could actually see clear thought the building. It looked more like the reconstruction of the South after the Civil War than a renovation. “That was only an illusion,” said Pat, “as the majority of the structure is quite intact and useable.”

The interior now supporting walls were removed so the area could be divided into the final configurations for apartments. Some steel beams were placed in strategic locations for additional strengthening and some wooden headers were replaced. The floor area was reinforced with lightweight concrete that also has soundproofing qualities. The empty spaces in between the balloon framework will be filled with fireproof material as well. Pat said that these open spaces that ran the entire length of the building would have served as a chimney for any fire that might have started. The heated air would have moved up through these air spaces, creating a strong draft and increasing the intensity of the burning. She said the volunteer firemen who fought the 1981 fire did a tremendous job of containing it as quickly as they did. “The potential for total destruction was very great.” According to Patricia, the result of adding these safety features is “a very substantial building.” There is no question that to tear down this building would have been a waste of a solid, useable structure not to mention the loss as an aesthetically pleasing piece of architecture.

There was only one sad act that Pat had to command. That was the removal of the main staircase. Problems with building codes and interference with the most efficient use of the upper floor space caused this decision to be made. Many people still remember that staircase as a very elegant feature that added character to the hotel. Charlotte Evans remembers the Italian artisans who laid the terrazzo tile in the entryway during the 1930 remodeling. The wide staircase helped add a feeling of elegance to the lobby.

The desire of Neighborhood Housing Services and the architects is to create a living space, which, while accommodating to elderly citizens, did not give the illusion of an institution. Consequently, the hallways are short and do not run from one end of the building to the other. Maximum creative talent was used, for example, to make the best possible use of the interestingly shaped window on the West side, facing the courthouse. Surely, this building will be as elegant and as far from institutional as physically possible. There will be 25 units all together, 2 two-bedroom units, one efficiency, eight-studio size, and the rest one bedroom. Each apartment was designed to make maximum use of the space and window placement.

Today the Park has been reborn as a distinctive apartment home community for active older adults. It has been completely modernized inside while retaining its picturesque historic style outside.

Located in the heart of Richland Center, the Park is again a focal point for social and civic activities in its beautiful and spacious community room, complete with kitchen. Its gracious country porch provides a relaxing place for friends and relatives to visit while enjoying the warmer seasons. 

The Park Apartments was designed for independent, carefree living to those 55 and over. Its downtown location is ideal-within walking distance to the post office, banks, pharmacies, local shops, and businesses. The Park also offers on-site resident management.

 The Park is still owned and managed by Neighborhood Housing Services of Richland County. We care about our residents and the residents themselves provide support for each other though the Park Apartments Residents Association (PARA) that was formed with NHS assistance. Along with the on-site resident managers, NHS staff also provides supportive information and resources to assist residents.

 In 1988 the Park Apartments received and “AWARD OF EXCELLENCE” from the Fannie Mae Foundation. The Park is listed on the National Trust for Historic Places.