Marcus Corp.‘s new limited-service hotel is now open in the west portion of the Hilton Milwaukee site in downtown Milwaukee.
With 175 rooms and suites, The Marc Hoteloperates independently from the Hilton, but guests have access to its restaurants and meeting space as well as to the neighboring Baird Center via a climate-controlled skywalk.
Plans for The Marc were announced in September following Marcus’ decision to mothball and remove the 14-story west tower from the Hilton’s available room inventory, scaling room count down from 729 to 554.
The Art Deco-style hotel (previously known as the Hilton Milwaukee City Center) underwent a major $42 million renovation last year to revitalize the guest rooms, event spaces and two-story lobby area in the original building, constructed in 1928. The project wrapped up in December.
The west tower, which was added to the building in 2000, was excluded from the project due to costs and has now instead been repurposed into The Marc. The only work that needed to be done were minor modifications to the hotel’s ground-floor common space and the creation of a main entrance on North 6th Street.
A guest room at the new Marc Hotel. Photo credit: Marcus Corp.
“Driven by Marcus Hotels & Resorts longstanding commitment to excellence, The Marc Hotel’s prime location, well-appointed rooms, convenient workspaces, and adjacent restaurants and amenities will offer convention and other guests the comfort and convenience they crave,” said Michael Evans, president of Marcus Hotels & Resorts. “This is one of the busiest and most vibrant areas of the city, and we are pleased to offer our guests yet another compelling option to make the most out of their stay in Milwaukee.”
The Marc moniker pays homage to the Hilton’s former name. Marcus Corp. purchased the property, which opened in 1928 as the Schroeder Hotel, in 1972 and renamed it the Marc Plaza Hotel. The property, at 509 W. Wisconsin Ave., was renamed again in 1995 when it adopted the Hilton Hotels flag.
The $42 million spent on the Hilton project is part of $160 million that Milwaukee-based Marcus Corp. has invested in its Wisconsin hotel properties since 2019, including the transformation of the Saint Kate and, more recently, upgrades to The Pfister Hotel and Grand Geneva Resort & Spa.
Elizabeth Morin is a writer based in Virginia Beach. She is passionate about local sports, politics and everything in between.
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