For years, downtown Muncie has been lacking a place for visitors to stay since the closing of the Roberts Hotel on Oct. 31, 2006, but now there are possibilities. The historic Roberts Hotel at 420 S. High St. in downtown Muncie, is now on the auction block. The sale is at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the hotel.
Owner and property manager Peter Dvorak of Bloomington was required to pay a portion of the $224,221 he owed in back taxes and when he failed to do so, the mortgage company filed foreclosure on the hotel, according to an article in the Star Press.
After it's closing in 2006, Dvorak announced his plan to convert the building into luxury apartments in late 2009, an estimated $10 million project. The transformation had just started when Dvorak cancelled the work after his firm had to close. Since then, the building has sat unused and empty, unlike what city council member Brad Polk remembers years ago.
"Growing up in Muncie I always remember the Roberts Hotel being there and helping the downtown grow," he said. "With it being empty, it's not doing any good for the Muncie community."
The Roberts Hotel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It has also been host to five United States presidents and various other dignitaries and celebrities. After this, the hotel was completely renovated, adding 77 guestrooms and an indoor pool to its list of amenities.
The Roberts Hotel was commissioned by local businessmen in 1921, including George Roberts, the influential man the building was named after. Designed by architect Charles W. Nicol, the hotel featured a bar, restaurant, theater and a two-story lobby with nine separate skylights and luminous decorative trim work and pillars. Located across from the Horizon Convention Center, the hotel has supported many local business ventures.
"When Roberts was open for business, people were staying there and attending the conventions at the Horizon Center," Polk said. "Now with the Roberts not there, it has had an impact on the conventions, businesses, and restaurants. They have all seen the drop off."
In a Daily News article from Fall 2009, Muncie Mayor Sharon McShurley said she has focused her efforts to improve the city in the immediate downtown area. At that time, her office was working on dealing with the struggling Roberts Hotel.
"I personally believe the downtown is the heart and soul of a community and redevelopment should start there and spread to the surrounding areas," McShurley said. "My focus has been to remove the blight, clear up administrative problems we inherited and resolve the hotel issue."
The sale is held by Key Auctioneers, an Indianapolis-based auctioneering firm, establishing itself in appraisal, auction and liquidation in the central Indiana area.
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