Encyclopedia Dubuque
"Encyclopedia Dubuque is the online authority for all things Dubuque, written by the people who know the city best.”
Marshall Cohen—researcher and producer, CNN
Affiliated with the Local History Network of the State Historical Society of Iowa, and the Iowa Museum Association.
VAN DUYN, John
VAN DUYN, John. (Grinnell, IA, Oct. 3, 1949- ). Real estate investor and hotel owner. With his family, Van Duyn moved to Dubuque in 1983 after commuting between Mason City, Iowa, and Dubuque for eight years while a limited partner in the Dubuque Inn. After selling retail stores owned in Mason City, Iowa, and Austin, Minnesota, Van Duyn bought the hotel. Three years later Inn Plaza, with rental space for twenty-four tenants, was acquired.
In 1990 Van Duyn was general manager, marketing director, and co-owner of the Best Western Dubuque Inn and Inn Plaza. He then purchased the Dubuque Holiday Inn, which became a Days Inn in January 1991.
Van Duyn served as a member of the board for the Dubuque Convention and Visitors Bureau, CLARKE COLLEGE Development, DUBUQUE MUSEUM OF ART, and in 1990 was the chairman-elect for the board of trustees of FIRST CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH.