Plainview Inn offers guests home-like feel

The Plainview Inn, located at 2219 W. Plainview Road, sits one mile south of the Springfield city limits on 15 acres of land. The bed and breakfast has three rooms available for guests, as well as an in-ground outdoor pool and two water gardens. Owners Chuck and Judy Readinger opened the inn five years ago.

"Since we're a mile south of the city limits, it feels somewhat rural," Chuck Readinger said. "But, it's still close to Bass Pro, shopping and restaurants."

The Readingers decided to turn their home into a bed and breakfast after their children grew up and moved away.

"When our children left, we didn't want to move," he said."We enjoy our home and the area. We thought it'd be a great location for a great bed and breakfast."

Before opening their home as a bed and breakfast, Chuck Readinger visited bed and breakfast inns all over the country to get ideas for his business. Certain adjustments were made to the home so it would meet city and county codes, but other changes, such as the decks, were added just for fun.

The Readingers are members of the state Bed and Breakfast Association.

"The association has certain standards that have to be met," he said."We're inspected for cleanliness, guest safety and the quality of our food once a year. The quests can know we've met the association's standards."

The Plainview Inn's three guest rooms are the Oak Room, the Dogwood Room and the Maple Room. Each room has an outdoor entrance, a king-size bed and a TV and VCR. One of the rooms, sometimes rented to honeymooning couples, has a whirlpool bath. Also available is the Maple Branch Room, a smaller room with a full-size bed. The Maple Branch Room can be used in conjunction with the Maple Room, sharing the bathroom across the hall.

A full breakfast is served to all guests, featuring specialties such as strawberry French toast, homemade muffins and cinnamon coffee.

The charge for a room at the Plainview Inn ranges from $60 for a single occupancy to $75 for a double occupancy. Advance reservations are requested, but not necessary. Readinger added that a $25 deposit is required, and it is refundable only upon notification of cancellation within seven days of the planned arrival.

Check-in time is between 4 and 8 p.m., and guest must be checked out by 11 a.m. The Readingers will, however, work with guests who need different check-in times.

According to Readinger, 80 percent of the Plainview Inn's customers come from its Web site at www.bbonline.com/ mo/plainview/.

"That's how most of our customers learn about us," he said. "This year, we've had customers from Australia and Scotland."

Readinger said he and his wife try to keep the inn's decor updated for the benefit of the guests.

"Staying at a bed and breakfast should be a pleasant experience," he said. "We treat our guests like family. There are regular customers who aren't from the area. They stay here while they're visiting a family member in a nursing home, or someone else."

Recent economic conditions have had an effect on business at the Plainview Inn, Readinger said.

"Business was off by 25 percent the last three months of last year," he said. "But it's picked up again. Now, we're within 10 percent of the norm."