Hotel opens to gala affair

The grand doorway of the historic Hotel Cathlamet opened to the public Friday afternoon illuminating the stately foyer. Family, friends and community members happily joined Kevin Prestegard, his wife Stephanie and her parents Kay and Wayne Cochran to celebrate the event.

“It has been such a process getting the Hotel up and running,” recalled Stephanie. “There was an environmental inspection, asbestos removal, assessments. The list goes on and on.”

“It is very important that we thank the Wirkkala family,” she continued. “They have been pivotal in getting this project up and going. They really did choose to sell to us. They had other offers to entertain but they wanted for us to have it.”

Stephanie explained, “Sandy (Wirkkala) knows how much Kevin loves this building and how badly he wanted it back. He never wanted to sell it in the first place. The Wirkkalas want what’s best for the community and they thought we were the right fit. We really appreciate their patience and support in getting here. It feels like it was meant to be.”

Kevin, who previously owned the building, and Stephanie firmly believe that the hotel now offers “something for everyone."

“There are 19 rooms and all of them are a little bit different,” explained Stephanie, who plans to run the hotel with her dad, Wayne during the day.

“This is definitely a gamble,” Stephanie laughed. “We are by no means rich! It would be impossible to do this without guys like my dad (Wayne Cochran) and Kevin who know plumbing, wiring and how to fix basic things.”

Of the June 15 grand opening, Stephanie says, “What a wonderful day. Thank you to everyone who has supported us. We hope that this business will bring a lot of good to the community.

The re-opening of the Hotel Cathlamet in the heart of Old Town on Main Street brings other changes as well.

“Sassy’s is no more,” said Janelle West who once owned the downtown chocolate shop. “I had to do more. I was running out of room and was having a hard time filling orders.”

So, Janelle together with Mike and Melissa Warriner and Marty Kuller bought ‘Tis the Season flower shop and combined the two to create “Sugar Lilies."

“We’ve been here until 2:00 a.m. every night trying to get the place ready,” West said.

Sugar Lilies opened its doors on the ground level of the historic Hotel Cathlamet replacing the space that a fitness center once filled.

“We’ll have a lot of the same stuff and some new things too,” West said. The larger space will make it easier to keep new stock and make sure that things are always fresh. We’ll also offer lunch, flowers, gifts, scrapbooking supplies, smoothies, bubble tea and more! Lots of stuff! We have the space for it now.”

Kay Cochran plans to move the Lower Columbia Realty office into the bottom space of the Hotel Cathlamet at the end of the month.

“When Janelle chose the larger space for Sugar Lilies, it left the space open where ‘Tis the Season used to be. It’s funny how things work out because this really is the space we wanted for the Lower Columbia Realty office. It’s perfect!”

“As for the little yellow house,” said Stephanie, “It might be too early to say anything but I think it will be another positive boost to Main Street.”