Harvard's Kirkland Hotel May Be Bicentennial Bust

The University may lose about $2000 on its Bicentennial Inn at Kirkland House, which opened on July 28, because reservations are approximately 30 short of the expected 100.

Bruce Collier, assistant dean of the College and director of the project, said yesterday if the project had been a success, Kirkland House may have been reopened as a Bicentennial Inn all next summer.

Collier said funds for the hotel project came from the undergraduate housing department. He did not know exactly how much they would lose but it would probably be a couple of thousand, he said.

Michael Cronin '75, Bicentennial Inn manager, said he had estimated the Inn would need from 80 to 100 guests--about 20 to 25 reservations per week--to break even. The first week there were only 25 guests.

Cronin said yesterday the immediate profit was not the major consideration when the project was initiated. "The original idea was to create good will among alumni," he said.

The Inn was designed to offer alumni and their friends the option of staying at a Harvard House, for relatively less expensive rates, while visiting Boston's Bicentennial activities.

University officials decided late in the spring to undertake the project this summer on an experimental basis when a poll of 2000 alumni indicated that the hotel might be successful.

During the first weekend, August 1-4, one large party of six never checked in, and another of seven left early, probably because Kirkland House is not air-conditioned and it was 110-degree weather, Cronin said yesterday.

Out of 60-70 reservations for the entire five weeks there have been only six cancellations so far. Cronin said this was normal especially since there is no reservation deposit.

He said, however, the Inn will close on September 2 instead of the original closing date of September 7 because there were too few reservations during that last week to make the project financially worthwhile.

Cronin said things ran very smoothly the first week, and there were no complaints from guests.

Nightly rates are $15 for a single room, $24 for a double, and $5 for each additional family member.