Crookston Inn and Convention Center to reopen – Grand Forks Herald

Laurie and Craig Stahlecker have formed a company to take over the hotel and are preparing to hold a soft opening on Wednesday, Feb. 19, with a regular opening date the following day. The Crookston Inn closed on Dec. 29, after previous owners Todd and Nicole Jacobson experienced difficulties repaying loans for remodeling and property taxes. Laurie Stahlecker was the general manager of the hotel before it closed.

Well yes and no, said Stahlecker, when asked if she owns the hotel. Im the owner of the business inside, the bank owns the building. I am pretty much managing it for a year, and then Ill go from there.

That bank is United Valley Bank in Grand Forks, from which Stahlecker is leasing the hotel with an option to buy.

Stahlecker said her new business is not affected by debts that dragged down the hotel in its previous incarnation.

That is a former owner issue, not mine, she said.

Angel Weasner, city finance director for Crookston, said the city is attempting to collect nearly $130,000 from previous owner Todd Jacobson, who took out loans through the city via a federal intermediary revolving loan program to pay for remodeling, as well as property taxes.

We have a personal guarantee, and so through legal channels, were calling the note, Weasner said.

The new business owner said she is not worried about competition from Crookstons three other hotels, the Golf Terrace Motel, AmericInn and Cobblestone Hotel and Suites.

I think I'll be fine, she said. Were a little bit different. I mean we have the event center.

Mike Jacobson, who said he is not related to the previous Crookston Inn owner Todd Jacobson, owns the AmericInn hotel in Crookston. He said his hotel is running at 46% occupancy for the month, even with the Crookston Inn closed. The occupancy rate needs to be in the mid-fifties to break even, he said.

When you have a $20,000-a-month payment, and you're only bringing in $30,000 or $40,000 and you got to pay bills and taxes and everything else, you just can't make it happen, Jacobson said.

Stahlecker, for her part, said she is glad to be reopening and has brought back about 25 Crookston Inn employees. She noted a number of cosmetic improvements have been done at the hotel in preparation for reopening, including new paint and some room updates.

Its got our own touch and feel to it, she said.

The hotel has 74 rooms and the event center can accommodate up to 400 people.

Stahlecker said she has events such as weddings lined up and is preparing to host a Darts and Divas event Friday and Saturday, Feb. 21-22. The event, a womens dart tournament, should bring more than 30 people to the hotel and event center.

The Crookston Inn also has a new menu and point-of-sale technology that allows a server to accept credit cards at a guests table.

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Crookston Inn and Convention Center to reopen - Grand Forks Herald