Hotel Millwright

amana, ia

Food & Beverage: Indigo Room | Electric Thread Social Club

rediscovering craft and heritage

The people of the Amana Colonies fled religious persecution in Germany in the mid-1800s and lived a communal life for nearly 80 years in east-central Iowa, roughly equidistant to Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, home of the University of Iowa. In recent decades, the Amana Colonies has become a popular visitor attraction for its fine craftsmanship and unique heritage.

At the former industrial center of the village of Amana sits an eight-acre woolen mill complex alongside the Millrace canal. And while the working mill continues to be Iowa’s only textile mill that produces wool and cotton products, the Amana Society saw an opportunity to transform underutilized buildings into a unique boutique hotel to meet a need for contemporary lodging. The property is composed of several buildings and will include a scotch and whiskey bar, a large outdoor patio with plenty of green space, an event space for weddings and events, a restaurant and bar, and all of the hotel amenities today’s traveler expects.

IDM’s experience in transforming places into destinations through thoughtfully designed and expertly executed boutique hotels has been an important asset in developing Hotel Millwright. In the same way that millwrights installed, dismantled, repaired, reassembled, and moved machinery in the mill, Hotel Millwright will be the anchor in the rejuvenation and redevelopment of the mill complex.