Meet the new owner of Hotel Mead. Here's what's planned for the 73-year-old Wisconsin Rapids hotel.

WISCONSIN RAPIDS – The new owner and management of Hotel Mead have a three-year plan to refresh and revitalize the hotel and elevate the space’s elegance while honoring and restoring the long-standing legacy in the Wisconsin Rapids area.

Sean Patel, the new owner, said he also owns a hotel in Madison and was doing research when he came across the “iconic” Hotel Mead. When he visited the site in person, he found good structure, saw a lot of potential and thought it was a good opportunity.

Patel purchased the hotel at 450 E. Grand Ave. and officially took over in March. He and his staff have already hit the ground running, setting a three-year plan to clean up the facility and make exterior and interior updates.

What changes are underway?

First on the list are efforts to clean and focus on the exterior. People will soon notice new signs declaring the newly-adjusted name: Hotel Mead Resorts & Convention Centers. Exterior lights, decorative lights and canopies will be updated, as well. Patel said staff have already cleaned up a lot of the facility and have fixed some functions throughout the hotel. He also added two massage chairs in the lobby that have shown to be popular with guests and visitors.

Patel said the group has already started to upgrade the rooms, including new carpets, furniture and lighting.

The Grand Avenue Tavern is open with updated dart boards, gaming machines and a pool table. The Whitney is now open for lunch from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will soon extend its hours to include dinner.

Lucky Richardson, the general manager, said the hotel is planning to celebrate The Whitney’s grand opening with a ribbon cutting next month as it rolls out its full dinner menu.

The group is also adding jobs, already doubling the amount of employees at Hotel Mead, and they are still hiring for positions across the hotel, including bartenders, chefs, front desk and more.

What else can people expect?

Richardson said a lot of the changes and decisions have come from the history of the iconic hotel that everybody knows and recognizes in the community. In the last couple of months, they’ve heard from many people who have had connections with Hotel Mead − whether they worked there years ago, had or attended a wedding there or were there for other events. Richardson said they’ve heard a lot of community members rooting for them and they’re excited to give back to the community.

Adam Serianni, the hotel’s food and beverage manager, said the group wants to bring back live entertainment and events, and to build The Whitney up to a more modern version of Café Milano that many people in the community loved.

Patel said the group wants to revive a lot of the past community favorites, including Easter brunch, a New Year’s Eve party and more. For Halloween, Patel said the group plans to create a haunted house.

The group wants to make Hotel Mead the place to go for events, entertainment, food and drinks.

“If you have nothing to do, just go to The Mead,” Richardson said.

Hotel Mead is for visitors and residents alike.

Hotel Mead has always been a staple of the Wisconsin Rapids community, and the new ownership and management wants to lean into supporting the area.

Richardson said the group has a good idea of when visitors and tourism picks up – usually for events from June through August – and they want to engage with people and organizations in the community throughout the entire year. She said they’ve already connected with the Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce, the Wisconsin Rapids Area Convention & Visitors Bureau, Mid-State Technical College and other local organizations. Serianni said they’re looking to host pool and darts tournaments, as well.

Richardson said they want residents to know Hotel Mead is here to support and help improve the community and to create something to be proud of.

Continuing a long-standing history

The latest ownership change continues about 73 years of Hotel Mead's history in Wisconsin Rapids. According to Daily Tribune articles at the time, it was originally built in 1950 as a replacement to the 69-year-old Witter hotel by Consolidated Water Power & Paper Co. The hotel was originally built under the name "Bel-mead Hotel," meaning "beautiful valley," but when George W. Mead I suffered a stroke and resigned as the company's president that year, the company renamed it Hotel Mead after him. Ahead of its opening, a Daily Tribune article called the construction of the hotel an "ambitious undertaking" that was recognized as "one of the most modern and attractive hotels in the middle west, if not the entire nation." Hotel Mead opened in 1951, was renamed the Mead Inn in 1962, but returned to Hotel Mead in 1999.

Patel purchased Hotel Mead from Founders Collection 2 LLC of Marquette, Michigan, which purchased the hotel from SKD Hotel Mead LLC in January 2020.

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Contact Caitlin at cshuda@gannett.com or follow her on Twitter @CaitlinShuda.

This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: Meet the new owner of Hotel Mead in Wisconsin Rapids