The Comfort Inn and Suites in Findley Lake, which has been closed for more than two years, will reopen soon.

FINDLEY LAKE — The lights are on and soon the doors will be opening at the completely renovated Comfort Inn & Suites in Findley Lake.

The hotel, which has been closed for nearly two years, was purchased in the spring by a group of four owners who incorporated the hotel as Unity Findley Lake, LLC.

Since then, the building has been completely gutted and is getting a full renovation. According to co-owner, Kristie Owens, plans are to open the doors for occupancy in January or February. “We are waiting for an inspection of the underground water tank,” she said.

The hotel was in a state of disrepair when the new owners purchased it, Owens said. “The whole thing has been gutted,” she said. “We took out all the furniture, the beds, tile and carpet. We filled 16 dumpsters.”

The interior of the hotel will be the new “Rise and Shine” design, Owens said. “The Comfort Inn rolled out that design this year,” she said. “Everything will be new _- the fitness center, the pool, and especially the lobby. We want people to gather in the lobby as an inviting space.”

However, Owens said, the building itself was in great structural shape and they will be keeping the layout. “I was apprehensive when I first saw it,” she said. “But when we saw the guts of the building and the space, it was a no-brainer.”

The hotel, along with the I-86 Express Restaurant, was built in 2001 by Norbert Cross as a complement to the Peek n’ Peak resort which he owned at that time. The restaurant was closed after a few years of operation, however. Cross sold the hotel and restaurant, and the next owners kept the I-86 Express closed, using it as a storage building for several years.

The hotel was sold again to a group of owners who incorporated it as Findley Lake Properties Inc. In 2019, it was sold again to a group and incorporated as Findley Lake Hospitality LLC. This group of owners changed the hotel to a Comfort Inn and Suites. This group defaulted on the $2,265,942 loan, and the hotel was foreclosed in 2022.

During the time the hotel was vacant, the property experienced a good deal of deliberate damage, especially in the outbuildings, Owens said. “There was a lot of theft and vandalism,” she said. “Even water pumps were cut out.”

One good thing during the gutting of the building was that the new owners offered the furniture to people in the area. “We put up signs, inviting people from the community to come and pick up whatever they wanted,” Owens said. “That was great and so much better than just throwing it away.”

Owens said the hotel group also owns a Comfort Inn on 12th Street in Erie, so they decided to stay with that brand. “It just makes it easier,” she said. “The Comfort Inn is a family friendly hotel and that’s what we want to be.”