Emporia’s former Travelodge has been getting a new look as the Guesthouse Inn.
“Almost everything has changed,” said general manager Kapila “Kap” Senanayake. “We are doing about half a million renovations.”
Some items are brand-new features, such as putting a refrigerator, microwave and high-speed Internet connection in every room. Others are things that had broken down or been closed that are now open again. The pool now works, the sauna now works, the restaurant has been open for about a week and a half and the spa is expected to be up and running by the end of the week. Even the bar will be operational once its liquor license is ready.
That’s a far cry from the situation Senanayake found after the motel changed hands in June.
“The place was run-down when we took over. Nothing was working,” he said. “The previous owner had not done any maintenance.”
If the business name sounds familiar, it should. Guesthouse was going to be the identity of the former University Inn at 1839 Merchant St. Work on that site has proceeded slowly, though it has still been steady enough to maintain the building permit, according to city officials.
“When we came over, I had past experience with Guesthouse, so I called and they gave the franchise to us,” Senanayake said. “So the University Inn will no longer be a Guesthouse.”
He knew the Travelodge — which was also once the Ramada Inn and a Holiday Inn before that — had been a good motel in the past. So with a new franchise and a lot of work ahead, he set about bringing that back.
“There’s an opportunity here,” he said. “We’ve done it before with properties like this.”
Lunch and dinner at the motel’s restaurant now reflect a more international menu, including Thai, Indian and Mediterranean dishes,
The renovations are expected to be complete by Nov. 1. Business since the changeover has been slow so far, Senanayake said.
“That’s partly because of the bad name the property had before we took over,” he said.
He added that he hopes to get most of the old customers back.
“It’s almost like starting over,” he said.