By 
On a bright October morning, residents gathered with government, community and business leaders to cut the ribbon on a new hotel and a new future for Battle Creek, Mich.
Situated in the heart of downtown, the new DoubleTree by Hilton is a symbol of the partnership between government, philanthropy, business and the community to create more opportunities for all people in Battle Creek.
“This hotel is a gathering place with multiple unique spaces for residents to use. You can feel the community being breathed into it,” said Joe Sobieralski, president and CEO of Battle Creek Unlimited, a community economic development organization that oversaw the hotel’s construction and development.
The DoubleTree is rooted in Battle Creek’s energy and culture of community, with murals and artwork commissioned by local artists filling indoor and outdoor spaces. An exterior mural by Jaziel Pugh celebrates Battle Creek Unlimited and the city’s small town grit and big city drive. An interior mural that touts “Our City. Your Home. Battle Creek” reflects a new brand narrative campaign for the city created by an executive design team of community leaders from the public, private and nonprofit sectors.
Welcoming the crowd of excited attendees, W.K. Kellogg Foundation President & CEO La June Montgomery Tabron shared that the hotel’s benefits have only just begun.
“Jobs and opportunities will radiate outward from this place throughout the city,” Tabron said. ”When talented people are given opportunities, the result is good incomes, stronger families, vitality and growth that spreads across our entire community.”
Just a few short years ago, this building was vacant – an example of decades-long disinvestment in downtown Battle Creek and redlining of its surrounding neighborhoods. But where others might have seen disrepair, the Battle Creek community saw opportunity.
Battle Creek Unlimited took control of the property in 2020, with a vision for a new hotel that would benefit local small businesses and residents by increasing activity downtown, providing new, good-paying jobs and contributing to Battle Creek’s vibrancy. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, along with the City of Battle Creek, Calhoun County, the State of Michigan and a coalition of other funders joined together to make this idea a reality.
“We’ve been a part of the Battle Creek community for more than 90 years,” said Yazeed Moore, director of Michigan Programs at the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. “It’s an honor to join with so many neighbors to invest in a prosperous future for our hometown, one that supports the well-being and economic security of Battle Creek’s families.”
The DoubleTree is the latest in a series of public-private investments designed to create a thriving downtown center in Battle Creek. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, the Battle Creek Community Foundation and other investors funded MDH Development to lead the award-winning redevelopment of the long-empty Heritage Tower. In 2020, it was reopened as The Milton, a mixed-use building combining apartments, retail and commercial offices. The renovation of The Milton has won historic preservation awards, and all apartment units filled up as soon as it opened, bringing new residents to the city’s downtown.
According to Tristan Bredehoft, co-founder of locally owned coffee shop, Café Rica, these investments are already generating returns, bringing customers and jobs to the city center.
“More people are coming downtown, and our business has been slowly but surely going up and up and up,” said Bredehoft.
The investments in downtown work in concert with the foundation’s other efforts to support local Battle Creek business owners like Bredehodt, including providing training, loans and grants to local entrepreneurs and offering capital and technical support they need to open and run their business.
In addition to bringing more people to downtown Battle Creek, where they can explore all the city has to offer, the DoubleTree will offer a new hospitality job training program where residents can develop in-demand skills. And the ownership of the hotel itself is designed to ensure that all revenue remains in the community, a structure that has won multiple economic development awards.
For families to thrive, they need vibrant places to live that are full of opportunities. It takes the partnership of people in government, nonprofits, philanthropy and the private sector to bring this kind of vitality to life.
Tiffany Blackman, founder of Bread & Basket Marketplace, a local public market that features goods from small businesses – many owned by people of color – knows this well.
“It’s more important than ever to take the energy around this renovated hotel and just balloon it out to all of downtown, so we can make the heart of downtown the heart again,” Blackman says.
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