Johnny’s Motel could soon join some other Grand Forks businesses in re-opening after last May’s catastrophic flood.
General Manager Daniel Brown says nothing is set in stone, but they’re hoping to open July 10th:
“We’re probably 90% complete, right now all of our 25 rooms are done inside, they’re spending next week doing touch-ups and the last little bit of the finishing work, cupboards, pantry stuff, back splashes….”
Thinking back to the initial damage, Brown says he’s never experienced anything like that before:
“It was very overwhelming for me but…. When you’ve got three feet of water inside your rooms and four feet of water outside your rooms, you can imagine the damage it’s caused…. With mold, and our foundation, the parking lot drainage, all the way to behind the walls, inside the studs, down in the crawl spaces. It was a nightmare.”
New additions include revamped rooms, colors, and new drainage. He adds there is new green-space along the riverside with new grass, and the new rooms have a warm and relaxing feel to them. They also raised their bank by about two feet as well. He adds insurance was tough to deal with initially, but once the ball got rolling it largely helped with rebuilding costs, some of which came out of pocket. Brown thanks Jennifer Wetmore of Community Futures Boundary for her help, and the locals and City of Grand Forks for their overwhelming support, adding that they are looking forward to being open for business once again.