MUSKEGON, Mich. —
Construction has started to turn Muskegon’s Hackley Administrative Building into a 45-room boutique hotel, called the Hackley Castle Inn and Suites.
Frank Peterson, the Vice President of Operations for WheelFish Group, who is overseeing the project, said the group plans to uncover what has been covered over the decades and highlight it in the restored building.
“You'll be able to see, like, how the building was built, like, a lot of the things that were covered up years ago,” Peterson said. “Like, brick walls and patterns in the brick that have been covered up for a long time, they'll be able to see them again.”
There will be a purpose for everything. The old steam tunnels that ran through the building will be "accented," Peterson said. Old holes in the wall will be transformed into windows for bunk beds.
Peterson also hopes the experience transports people back to a time when lumber barons ruled the town.
“So we can give people like a kind of a look back into not just what it was like to live in in 1920 or 1910, in Muskegon, but what it was like to live if you were a lumber baron, if you had, you know, if you had resources,” Peterson said.
The hotel will also serve as an alternative to neighborhood Airbnbs or shoreline beach houses. Rooms will range from a king bed to space for over a dozen.
“It's close to really all that piece of the heritage. If you're traveling to get some culture, to get some heritage, it's a great opportunity to stay here versus staying in a, you know, an Airbnb in a random neighborhood,” he said.
The building will remain semi-public, giving more access than if it was transformed into office buildings or private condos.
Muskegon City Manager Jonathan Seyferth said the public will have access to Hackley like they never had before.
“You know, you'll be able to rent rooms and stay there, go in and have dinner and experience this building in a way that you know has never been experienced before,” Seyferth said. “It's usually for most of its history been tied to education, which is wonderful. It was a great educational building for our community for many, many years. But now, folks. And experience in a different way.”
The hotel and the amenities will be a draw, and Peterson knows that. But he wants the community to know the preservation comes with a purpose.
“We want people to know that that was goal number one to save the building and that they're excited that it's going to be used to promote Muskegon the way that Charles Hackley promoted Muskegon,” Peterson said.
Construction began on Aug. 5. Developers are planning to open the hotel in the fall of 2025.
The Historic Hackley Square Facebook page regularly posts photos of the renovations and any discovered artifacts—everything from historic toilet brushes to antique pop cans and writing on chalkboards dating from the 1940s.
To see more updates on the project, check out their Facebook page here.
