East Lansing’s Former Amity Hall Motel, 1950s-1960s

One of East Lansing’s memories that seems to have gotten swept under the carpet is the former Amity Hall Motel, once located at 2722 E Grand River Avenue.

It was just one of many similar roadside motels that began popping up after World War II, as families were starting to get their lives back and start traveling again.

Postcards of the era described the Amity as “40 sound proofed completely carpeted units equipped with tub & shower, phone, TV, AM-FM radio and complimentary continental breakfast.” Decades ago, that sounded like Heaven.

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The Amity operated through the 1950s and 1960s, about a mile east of the MSU campus. In the early 60s the overflow of college students was extreme, and while new dorms were being built, the Amity was being used (as were other nearby motels) as student housing to handle the influx of kids.

Today, the motel is all but forgotten except by oldtimers, or former students who actually lived there for a while. It is no longer a motel but has managed to keep that 50s-60s appearance and is now called College Park Apartments. Scroll down to see images...