This weekend, many alumni will come to visit their alma mater. The College and some of its organizations plan to put on a variety of events, as they do each year, but what about the town? For a city that is kept alive by the College, what has Monmouth done for students, their families and MC alumni? Well, almost anyone would agree that the citizens of Monmouth make up one of the nicest, most amiable small towns in all of the country. The community of Monmouth is a close-knit group of people who always seem to help those in need. There is one area that they seem to have forgotten, though. Where are all the alumni supposed to stay?

 Those of you who have been here for a year or two may have noticed that the Monmouth Inn and Suites no longer exists. This past year it was fully converted to a nursing home. With Melling’s also closed for quite some time, the only place to stay in Monmouth is the Super 8 Motel. The Super 8 certainly cannot accommodate everyone who wishes to stay in Monmouth by itself, not to mention that it is far from a five star hotel. There have been complaints from quite a few guests, that the Super 8 has become run-down and is not a great place to stay. Some people are even unaware that there is a place to stay in Monmouth. In light of this, visitors have been forced to stay in Galesburg, an inconvenient 15 minutes away. Even worse, some have found that the hotels in Galesburg and even Macomb were booked. Sophomore Hillary Blahnik said that her family was one such case, having to stay 45 minutes away in Sherrard–not exactly next door.

This is a crippling move to Monmouth economically; not only does the town lose the business of would-be guests at a hotel, but also the business that the guests would bring to other parts of the town, such as restaurants or supermarkets. Cerar’s Barnstormer, a restaurant located on Broadway across from what was formerly the Monmouth Inn and Suites greatly benefited from having the hotel across the street. Guests were able to convene within only a few minutes, and the problem of driving home after a drink or two was alleviated. Now, though, guests, such as alumni, will have to find somewhere else to stay and to get together with old friends. One might ask how the town of Monmouth could be so economically naïve. Well, there are plans underway to build an AmericInn hotel where Melling’s Motel used to be. It will have 65 rooms, with whirlpool suites, an indoor pool, a library area, a business center and free hi-speed Internet in all of the rooms, and it is projected to be complete by May 2008.

So, Monmouth is aware of the situation, but ask yourselves the following: is this really a solution to the problem? Sure, there will be a hotel next year, but what are families and alumni supposed to do in the meantime? Cerar’s manager believes that business will pick up with the addition of the AmericInn, but there’s still the problem of Homecoming this weekend. What about businesses that have permanently lost business, which is vital in a small town community? Are 65 rooms enough to cater to the College’s needs? Whatever you decide, just know that in the meantime Monmouth is losing business to towns like Galesburg.

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