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BAYFIELD – A steady flow of onlookers watched on in sadness Tuesday as an excavator worked to remove the final pieces of the collapsed roof of a landmark hotel that’s been forced closed for the foreseeable future.
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Main Street in front of the 1840s-built Albion Hotel remained closed as a precaution while workers removed all that’s left of the beloved business’s roof – as its fans travelled to the scene, the owner pledged to re-open and supporters raised $58,000 and counting in an online fundraiser.
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“It’s really upsetting,” Kathy Sauve, who once worked at the hotel as a bartender, said in the aftermath of the Sunday morning roof cave-in, which happened with no one inside after days of heavy snowfall.
Added her husband, Maurice Sauve: “It brought tears to my eyes.”
Tony and Lorraine Vermeulen of Grand Bend had their first date at the pub. They drove to the Huron County village to see it for themselves.
“I’m looking at it, and I just can’t imagine they’re going to salvage it,” Lorraine Vermeulen said. “And I keep thinking what would have happened if it had collapsed when it was full of people.”
A neighbouring restaurant, the Black Dog, “sustained some damage,” its owners noted on social media, adding they were waiting for word from the municipality on when they can safely reopen.
The damage to the iconic Albion Hotel was painful for other local merchants, even if their businesses weren’t directly affected.
“We’re all very sad,” said Karen Sweet, who works at a clothing store in the village. “This is devastating for the town.”
The Albion Hotel’s owner couldn’t be reached for comment. In a video posted to social media, he said “the massive snow” caused the “massive damage” to the roof – but noted engineers believe the building can be saved and they “plan to rebuild the Albion and bring it back to its glory.”
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The community’s passion for the hotel may be reflected in the large response to an online fundraising effort intended to help cover the wages of the nearly 30 employees who are out of work with Christmas looming. As of Wednesday morning, more than $58,000 had been collected.
The hotel, which dates from the 1840s, added a second storey in 1856, according to its website and underwent major renovations in the 1980s. It bills itself as “a favourite stop for food, drink and, above all, rest.”
While some looked on Tuesday with sadness, others expressed optimism that the rebuild will happen. Judy Stephenson, who owns an art gallery a few steps away from the hotel, said she awoke Sunday morning to texts from friends about the roof collapse and ran to see it for herself.
“It was pretty upsetting to find out about it,” she said, adding: “I feel that the building can be saved.”
bbaleeiro@postmedia.com
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