Confessions of an Innkeeper:​
End of the Innocence

We have reached a really important milestone as I write this mid-April – we have completed our demolition! The old girl has been stripped and has few secrets to reveal at this point.

We have chosen to go much deeper than we had originally forecasted. These decisions were really a combination of two factors: opportunities to expose and create terrific new spaces; and conditions that we discovered that had to be dealt with properly.

The Gordon Suite: Stripped and ready.
I first want to spotlight how terrific the relationship has been with our contractor, the trades and all of our support team that includes architects, engineers and designers. We have been able to work very collaboratively and they have rolled with the opportunities and hurdles that have come up in this very complex project. This project has truly called on the creativity and experience of the entire team, and I know that you will see fruit of this when you visit us.
A Kingston maker at work!
Old walls, new floors.
Stripping the building down has given us new insights in to the history of how the Club has changed and evolved over the years. We have been able to see where old windows and doors were. We have pieced together how the Bank morphed into the Frontenac Club in 1906, and how the buildings were altered to be apartments and residences after the original Club ceased operations. Several rooms have had multiple door openings over the years; halls were altered; walls added; bathrooms moved multiple times and many layers added to the walls and floors. There were several days of ‘look what we found’ or ‘you are not going to believe this’ over the last 60.
Look at the prices in 1938!
Gin, ginger ale and a smoke.
A problem even in '32!
Re-using a long closed opening above!
Re-working the 3rd floor.

It is really exciting for all of us to be turning our attention to starting the re-build process. Watch for an update in early June that will show you some spaces that are framed and ready for drywall, and some renderings of the interior spaces.

Have a great Spring!

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