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The exterior of the building's first five floors is faced with limestone and contains Art Deco carvings and lush floral designs. A bronze plaque on the Wisconsin Avenue side of the building reminds guests and passers by that the property was once the site of a Potowatomi Indian village at the foot of a steep bluff.
The hotel was acquired by Towne Realty Inc. in 1964 for a reported price of about $6.25 million dollars. It was sold six months later to the Sheraton organization which, in turn, renamed the property the Sheraton Schroeder Hotel.
In 1972, Ben and Steve Marcus purchased the hotel, which had become a costly venture for its owners in the post-war decades. They renamed the property the Marc Plaza Hotel and launched an $8 million renovation project from 1972-1975. Every room was enlarged, reducing the number of guest rooms from 811 to 500. A ramp parking structure was added in 1975.
In 1994, The Marcus Corporation announced that it would shut down the operation of the Marc Plaza Hotel for six months of extensive multi-million dollar renovation/restoration. The ambitious project, which commenced late that year, restored the entire hotel to its original 1920s classic grandeur, while its infrastructure was enhanced to include state-of-the-art communications and amenities.
On April 21, 1995, the property became a franchise of the Hilton Hotels Corporation and became the Milwaukee Hilton. In 1998, the hotel was renamed the Hilton Milwaukee City Center. Today guests will benefit from the luxury chain's worldwide sales force, reservation system and frequent stay programs. In addition, as Milwaukee's convention headquarters hotel of choice, the Hilton has added 250 guest rooms and a skywalk, which will link the hotel to the Midwest Airlines Center, Milwaukee's largest convention facility.
Today, the Hilton Milwaukee City Center stands as a proud monument to Milwaukee's ever-changing skyline, welcoming visitors just as it did back in 1928.
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