TRI-COUNTY — Plans for cosmetic renovations to three historic Big Bend hotels, the Holland Hotel and Maverick Inn in Alpine and the Hotel Limpia in Fort Davis, announced in August 2023, have stalled while owner Byways Hospitality awaits a final lender.
The Austin-based company purchased the three properties from previous owner Charles Mallory and took over operations in January 2024. Selective demolition has taken place at all three properties, but a lender backing out of the project in August and other issues have led to delays.
Company cofounders Collin Bibb and Brian Carrico said progress has been made on finalizing design plans, securing other funding like an energy efficiency loan, and obtaining tax credit approval from the Texas Historic Commission and National Parks Service — all three properties will be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Historic tax credits help offset rehabilitation costs up to 25%.
Carrico said with everything else in place, they are optimistic they will close on a construction loan in early 2025 despite initial setbacks. “We still have the energy efficiency financing in place, we still have the investor financing in place, and we still have the tax credits in place, so that put us in a position in August where we needed to go back and find a new lender,” Carrico said. “That’s what we’ve been doing since then, and in the current environment, that just takes a while.”
“In the meantime, our focus is just trying to continue to operate the properties the best we can in their current state, continue to take care of our guests that we have staying with us, continue to take care of the staff and focus on training and getting ready for when we do start construction,” he added.
Current staff will remain employed, and once renovations are completed Byways Hospitality anticipates growing its workforce. While the hotels will have reduced capacity during construction, the company is hoping to phase work so none of the properties have to fully close down. The Century Bar and Grill, located within the Holland, has been closed since January when Byways began the selective demolition process. Carrico said they made the decision to keep the restaurant closed throughout construction because they are moving it from the southeast to the southwest corner of the building where it was originally located.
Alexa MGMT, a company cofounded by Carrico and his wife, Bree, is currently managing the properties.
Byways Hospitality was previously under contract to purchase the Harvard Hotel in Fort Davis, but the seller backed out when the lender decided not to move forward with the project. Carrico said they are keeping in touch with the current owners. The property is still listed for sale for $1.4 million.
While financing gets worked out, the company has brought in several consultants, including Post Oak Preservation Solutions, and its architect, Baldrige Architecture, to help study and document the buildings, all of which are roughly 100 years old. Structural and engineering evaluations have been completed on all three properties, Carrico said. “I certainly understand that from an outsider’s perspective, it looks like not as much is happening,” Carrico said. “But in reality, we’ve had an army of consultants in the background working on these things.”
Byways Hospitality reviewed 3D model renderings of the planned renovations with The Big Bend Sentinel but declined to share them for publication. The updates — largely cosmetic — involve staying true to the original visions of the properties while modernizing HVAC, plumbing and electric services. Mallory, the previous owner who remains a partner in the project, last renovated the structures in 2012.
“One consistent theme here is that they’ll be brought up to modern standards, meaning that they’re going to have highly energy efficient HVAC, they’re going to have modern electrical, they’re going to have water efficiency incorporated into all the plumbing fixtures,” Carrico said. “But that is primarily from a cosmetic perspective, meaning that we’re trying to avoid gut renovation as much as possible.”
There’s also an effort to cater to modern guest sensibilities for more spacious rooms and bathrooms while delivering the Western flair out-of-towners are seeking. Custom-designed wallpaper in standard guest rooms at the Holland will feature Alpine’s skyline.
The 27-room Holland Hotel was built in 1928 and designed by Henry Trost, a well known architect with a firm based in El Paso. It’s had many lives, once even serving as an office building. Carrico said certain modifications made over the years will be removed in order to restore the grandeur of the original lobby and bring back a ballroom that was converted into a one-bedroom apartment and games room.
A new check-in desk that closely resembles Trost’s original design will be installed next to a bar; off of the lobby will be a lounge-style room with a library and fireplace that opens out to the existing courtyard. “They refer to the Holland Hotel in the history of Alpine so much as the living room of Alpine, so we want to recreate that feel,” Carrico said.
The Maverick Inn — believed to be the longest-running motor court in Texas — will retain wood ceiling and saltillo tile features, but will undergo bathroom renovations and more. Similar to the Holland, some rooms will feature pedestal sinks in the main room, per original designs, which will help make room for larger walk-in showers in the bathrooms. The pattern of adobe stair-stepped walls surrounding doors on the Maverick Inn property will be mirrored in the rooms.
In Fort Davis, the Hotel Limpia’s pressed tin ceilings will remain, and carpets will be removed to allow for the refinishing and staining of original hardwood floors. The Orchard building located behind the hotel — which was built in the 1920s as apartments for McDonald Observatory researchers — will be transformed into spaces that accommodate more guests.
“We think it’s a really functional use of the space, because now it’ll accommodate families a lot better, or groups or friends, because instead of being a one-bedroom apartment with the kitchen, where very few people are using the kitchen, we’ll have a one-bedroom plus a bunk room,” Carrico said.
The Blue Mountain Bar and Grill, once the electrical plant for the hotel, is also getting a facelift. It was not deemed a historic structure, however, so it will not require the same stringent demolition, documentation and design review as The Century. Bibb and Carrico said they are excited about their plans for each space and look forward to getting construction underway “in earnest” soon.
The project comes at a time when the City of Alpine is seeking to grow economic development following the Holland Avenue fire in May that destroyed several long-running local businesses. City council also approved the expenditure of $39,000 for the development of a historic district survey that will help pave the way towards establishing downtown Alpine as a National Historic District, a move that would allow for more business owners to apply for tax credits for restoration projects.
Once renovations are complete, Carrico said the company hopes to share the improved spaces with local, not just visiting, customers. “If these hotels are successful in the future, it’s going to be because the locals are a huge part of that. So much of the business is going to come from locals and the restaurants.” Carrico said. “We want locals to be proud of these spaces, ultimately, when we’re done.”
Correction: This story has been updated. The original version of this story incorrectly described the last piece of funding needed in the headline and the title. It should have read “lender.”