LITTLE CURRENT—Passersby on Highway 6 have watched as the new Manitoulin Motel took shape over the past few months and now, despite the many challenges presented by pandemic-clogged supply chains in securing custom furniture and building supplies, the new Little Current short-term accommodation option is open for business and is proving well worth the wait.
Builders Braden Macaluso and Jordan Stephens celebrated the recent opening with bottles of champagne and took The Expositor on a brief tour of one of the stylishly appointed rooms. From what we have seen, the entrepreneurial partners have every right to celebrate their accomplishment. The rooms provide a warm and welcoming atmosphere, with backlit counters, well-placed USB ports by desk and bed, each room offers double queen-sized beds and high-set windows that offer great natural light while providing an unusual level of privacy in a motel room.
Mr. Stephens admitted that there were a few nervous moments as the countdown to the opening loomed ever closer, as bookings opened on June 26 for mid-July occupancy. “It was all hands on deck,” he laughed, obviously relieved that the finish line had been crossed in time to welcome the motel’s first guests.
The units are priced competitively in the market, lying somewhere between a hotel pricing and that of more vintage motel offerings.
Manitoulin Motel is a brand new, modern establishment consisting of 12 rooms located at 51 Walcot in Little Current, each designed to provide guests with a comfortable and relaxing stay. The motel offers a superb location close to the Tim Hortons on Highway 6, next to Manitoulin Brewing Co. close to Elliott’s Restaurant and a short walk to the downtown core. Each room is equipped with comfortable beds, clean linens, air conditioning, heating, flat-screen TV and free Wi-Fi access.
Some rooms of the motel are still in process, having a partial occupancy designation, but will soon be totally complete. The duo intends to operate the motel themselves for the time being. As Mr. Macaluso explains “this is the first time we have built a motel, so we need to educate ourselves about how it operates before we can tell someone else how we want it to be run.” Given the drive and determination already demonstrated by these two young entrepreneurs who have already built several apartment buildings and houses in the Manitoulin region, that shouldn’t take too long.
In addition to currently building a pair of single family homes in Little Current, the duo has purchased The Edgewater building in the downtown core. Stay tuned for what they have planned for that storied property in the near future.
In the past two years the partners have built two four-plex apartment buildings in town.
Bookings can be made online at hotels.cloudbeds.com.
