The White Hotel has Guests

While I was checking out the coming week's movies at the Clova, I noticed lights on in the second story of the old White Hotel coming from both front upper suites.

Its been empty for a long time, a couple of years or so. Last summer there was a small crew doing renovations. I spoke to one fellow and he said his friend had bought the old hotel and was renovating it and planned to sell it.

Perhaps it has since sold. There are 5 apartments in the building, 4 upstairs and one on the ground floor in the back, and two store front businesses in the front (Sea Shanty and Danica's).

White Hotel update?

I was walking my dogs in Cloverdale this morning and saw 2 fellows up a scaffolding in front of the White Hotel on 176th Street and a 3rd man standing on the sidewalk. They were whitewashing the front of the building. One of the guys on the scaffolding dropped something and it crashed to the sidewalk. Then I heard him say he was going to throw down a hammer so I decided to play it safe and stop.

No, nothing else crashed down because he spotted me about then!

I did chat to the man on the ground and he said the building is owned by a friend of his who bought it from an older man not too long ago and they are renovating it. He said his friend is planning on selling it.

I managed to find out that there are 5 apartments in this building. Amazing because its not all that big. On the ground floor are the Sea Shanty restaurant and Danica's hair salon. I've been in the Sea Shanty a few times and I can walk in from the back parking lot and the restaurant extends all the way to the front of the street. I have never been in Danica's so I never really thought about it one way or another, just assumed it had a similar floor plan to the Sea Shanty. I guess not because the man said there is one apartment on the ground floor and 4 on the second floor. Those have to be tiny apartments. I'm pretty sure in the past when I noticed a for rent sign on the door that it said bachelor and one bedroom apartments.

So there's the scoop. Renovating it to put it up for sale. Interesting because it was supposedly renovated 2 years ago to attract a better quality of residents according to the sign that used to be on the door.

The man on the sidewalk must have been somewhat aware of the shady past because he called it a former crack house pit.

Oh well. Will be interesting to see what happens to it and if he has any success selling it.

Resurrecting the White Hotel?

The infamous White Hotel in downtown Cloverdale has been closed for about a year. Shortly after the police pulled a fugitive out of there after a few hours stand off the front door on sidewalk level and the 2nd floor windows were boarded up.

The street level houses 2 stores - Danica's hair and Sea Shanty fish & chips.

The building is about 100 years old and I guess many years ago it was a hotel. Even since I've been a kid its been living spaces up there. I'm not sure if they are bachelor apartments or 1 bedroom apartment or what the scoop is because I've never been inside. A couple of years ago the building's owner had put a sign on the door saying he'd renovated the building in hopes of attracting better quality residents.

Not judging by the fugitive hiding out there!

A couple of days ago I was walking the dogs past and noticed two men on a ladder/scaffolding changing the sign area. I can't really recall what was there before but they're putting up something very white. White Hotel? Whitewashed plywood type of thing. The front door was open and I glanced inside and saw the floor is a rather cheap looking laminate not placed correctly. Slapped widthwise across the hall instead of going lengthwise. I'm not sure what the reason was for doing it this way. Save money? Running low on laminate? Do-it-yourselfer who doesn't have a clue and didn't read the instructions on the box? It looks ugly, but I don't live there and I don't own it so its not my issue. Its a safe bet that whoever placed that floor doesn't live there either and doesn't care how it looks!

Anyway if that floor is any representation of what it looks like upstairs after renovations.....hmmm.

I guess after the fugitive issue the owner must have evicted all tenants or else they moved out on their own and the place has not been occupied for the past year. I don't know whether the last owner has since sold the White Hotel and somebody knew is taking it over and trying to get some revenue going again from the upstairs suites.

I do know it must be going slowly. Those 2 guys were back today again working on putting up that white sign. I'm not sure what's taking so long other than its overhead work and maybe awkward. The sign is only about 2 feet high and about 30 feet long and its in sections.

Oh well. I shall keep an eye out for a "rooms for rent" sign to show up on the door.

Police action in downtown Cloverdale

I was out walking my dogs and heading for a loop around downtown Cloverdale only to find 176th Street behind yellow police tape and a police officer standing on the corner at 58th Avenue. I can see down the road that the police tape is across 57th Avenue too. I spoke with a man who was talking to the police officer and all I can find out is the police are trying to bring a bad man out of the White Hotel. Apparently he's wanted for murder. The back alley is also behind police tape and there is an ambulance parked at the back of the hotel.

Nothing on the news yet.

The White Hotel is located on the west side of 176th Street near Hawthorne Square. Its about 100 years old and in the past has been a rooming house for more or less unsavory types. A couple of years ago a notice was placed on the door by the owner saying in an attempt to attract a better clientele he had renovated the hotel into one bedroom and bachelor suites for rent.