Hotel Hartington set to open this week

HARTINGTON — The Historic Hotel Hartington is set to open its doors.

The three-story hotel had been shuttered for over 20 years before Ben and Erin Schroeder decided to revitalize Hartington’s once-grand community centerpiece.

There are rooms booked this weekend for a rehearsal dinner, and two bridal parties sharing the hotel and the Globe, new owners Ben and Erin Schroeder look to put a ten-month renovation project to an end.

“It’s been very, very busy,” said Erin. “Because this is our hobby and we are passionate about it, it doesn’t seem overwhelming and time-consuming. It has it’s moments that show flashes of that, but really we love doing it so to come after work or on weekends never felt like a drudgery.”

The hotel will feature four different wings of rooms. On the second floor, there will be a bridal suite on one side, with a group of rooms on the opposite end that is labeled by famous 1920s era gangsters like Al Capone. On the third floor, there is another suite on one side, and the other side has rooms labeled with famous 1920s era actors. There are 17 bedrooms, four gathering areas, and nine bathrooms on the upper two lodging floors.

Schroeder says the place is much more than a hotel though and describes it more under the umbrella term of an event center. There will be a shop on the north end, a bar in the basement, a coffee shop in the lobby, and a dining/event room for groups.

“The bar is the Taproom. We have our buffalo head Dudley that is our mascot down there. The Lobby is [the name for] the coffee shop, the dining, and kind of the catering. The shop is Talk to the Bricks. Basically, they are separate but together and if we are here the door will be open.”

Schroeder wants the new place to be consistent with what there is to offer and the hours of operations. She says this will take some experimenting first to find out when the best hours of operation will be.

“The coffee shop will be open Monday through Friday from 7-5:30 and then on Saturday from 8-noon. The bar will be open on Friday nights from 8-midnight, and then on Tuesday and Thursday for October and November we will try some buffet style pop up dining from 5-8 and the bar will be open at that time too.”

Schroeder hopes that bringing another business to the downtown area will continue to grow Hartington as a destination place for people to come to visit. She also said the community support has been amazing and she aims for the place to help grow the sense of community that comes with a small town like Hartington.

“It has been amazing,” said Schroeder. “We have had people make us food — casseroles, donuts, muffins. We have had ladies come in and I will just find them up on ladders washing windows.”

Not to mention all of the help from her children, their friends and more.

“There are a zillion kids from all schools and all ages that have moved lamps, couches, done flooring. My kids have been a huge part of this. This has been so much family time and is something they are proud of.”

Walking by the building, many have noticed a new back patio area on the west side of the building. This was put in for several reasons. It makes the building ADA accessible to the main floor, it helps with drainage, and it adds an “al fresco” option that Schroeder enjoys.

The building has come a long way from when the Schroeder’s purchased it before the beginning of 2018. At that time, the plans were still rather big picture of what the future held for the business. Slowly it came into shape as it was realized that all floors needed to be renovated together instead of the step-by-step process they hoped.

“I would say in the beginning with the big picture process it swapped around and we thought we might just start with the main floor. It was very easy to see that wasn’t going to be possible because to run your fire system and plumbing you really had to make it a whole project.”

The challenge to design the four floors was fun for Schroeder though.

“I think the design was like fitting together a big jigsaw puzzle without the picture on the box, and so I love that challenge. There is always a bit of mystery to it and how to make it all work.”

The renovations featured a new plumbing system, windows, floors, A/C, and much, much, much more.

The building’s renovated feel with the classic look will add another option to the variety of Hartington businesses that there are too frequent.