The Story of Heidel House Hotel & Conference Center
For one small Wisconsin lake town, the Heidel House is synonymous with the community itself. When the resort closed in 2019, it had far-reaching impact on the Green Lake area’s economy and identity as a favorite tourism destination. This is the story of how partners came together to revitalize this important property – and keep Growin’ Wisconsin.
Video Transcript
Lisa Beck | Executive Director, Green Lake Area Chamber of Commerce
“Having grown up in the area, it was definitely an opportunity for students in the area to have a summer job working here at the Heidel House. So, I was fortunate. I, along with a friend, applied for a busing job here at Heidel House, and I continued working there from my sophomore year all the way through college. I spent a lot of summers here meeting people, coming back time after time every summer, the same couples coming to the same table asking for table number 32. It was definitely an experience — something I look back on and it’s super close to my heart having the Heidel House here now and reopening.”
Loni Meiborg | Senior VP of Marketing, Fortifi Bank
“When Heidel House closed, it was a missing link. Every year, they welcomed thousands of travelers. Those travelers generate room tax dollars and revenue in our stores. It really supports the city’s infrastructure of a rural town in Wisconsin.”
Don Klain | President, Lighthouse Hospitality Group
“Since the Heidel House shut down in 2019, there’s less traffic commercially in the Green Lake area. We estimate about 40 to 50,000 guests per year stay here. Those are people who utilize gas stations and the liquor store and the grocery store. That’s the type of impact that really helps a community.”
Beck
“Originally, in the 1940s, is when the Heidels’ welcomed their first guests. They came into Green Lake and needed lodging and that’s how it originated and started. Some of the property pieces here, like the Carriage House, they still exist, that date back to those original 1800s. It’s pretty cool that there’s still some stories to be told of the history here.”
Klain
“The Heidel House wouldn’t have happened without local partnerships and friendships and working relationships. It started with working with the city and the mayor to help us along to develop this project. and help us with hurdles along the way. We partnered with Fortifi Bank. They became a partner and we have a great working relationship and between the two groups we were able to put together the funds to be able to redevelop the Heidel House as it is today.”
Meiborg
“Our mission at the bank is to Grow Wisconsin. We say it’s one person, one business, and one relationship at a time. When we were asked to participate in the redevelopment of Heidel House, we knew we couldn’t miss this opportunity to help our friends and our neighbors in this community.”
Klain
“The Green Lake community has really embraced the hotel. The Heidel House Hotel & Conference Center has 115 guest rooms. About half of the rooms face the lake and we have suites and junior suites and then we also have 12,000 square feet of meeting space and banquet availability space.”
Meiborg
“As a Green Lake local, we are ecstatic about the reopening of Heidel.”
Beck
“It definitely has revived Green Lake. You see a burst of energy and things that are thriving now. We have a couple stores opening up downtown. They’re seeing the impact to the area. They have a swimming pool. They have a conference center. They have the full service restaurant and bars. So if you wanted to host your wedding or host a conference, that’s really important to our community here to be able to bring those large groups into Green Lake.”
