A new hotel opening in downtown Muncie will train people with disabilities in the hospitality industry.
The Courtyard Marriott hotel and Thr3e Wiseman restaurant are set to open in the middle of December. At least 20 percent of the employees for both facilities will have disabilities.
The hotel, which will open for business Dec. 15, is owned by The Arc of Indiana, an organization dedicated to serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. It is paired with Erskine Green Institute, where students will train before working in the hotel. Kim Dodson, executive director of the Arc of Indiana, said the many parts of the hotel make it special.
“It’s a unique project — first of its kind that put all the pieces and components together in one building,” Dodson said.
The hotel will have 50 guest rooms over six floors, along with a pool, a parking garage and a covered walk to the Horizon Convention Center. Roger Brunkow, owner's representative for the Arc of Indiana, said the rooms were designed to accommodate the students with disabilities. He said 17 rooms will meet accessibility standards, which is about 12-15 more than the average hotel.
Scott Wise, owner of Scotty's Brewhouse, was happy to join the project with Thr3e Wiseman, his second Muncie restaurant. The restaurant will be a part of students' classes, with a large kitchen designed for student shadowing purposes.
"It’s something that our vision and our mission and our company is really about — more than just serving pizza and burgers and fries and wings and beer," Wise said. "I’m just so proud and honored to be able to work with the group that we’re working, to work with the Arc, to help people that might not have gotten a shot in the job force market, now they’re getting a lift."
Classes are set to start Jan. 11. Students at the institute will have eight different tracks from which to choose, including food service, business and health care training. Eighty students will attend the school each year, with 20 students in each six- to eight-week session.
While the hotel has no direct affiliation with Ball State, Dodson said the two will be working in close collaboration. The students will be able to use Ball State food services and ride the buses, and several Ball State staff and faculty are helping develop a training curriculum.
Chris Roberts, superintendent of construction for the hotel, said the construction work will be done by Nov. 6. He said he's enjoyed working on the hotel because of the difference it will make for people with disabilities.
"Things just start coming together. … It's always exciting," Roberts said. "The planning, hard work — it's a beautiful thing. It's a neat project to work on. It's not just a hotel. It's gonna benefit people. It's pretty rewarding."
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