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New old hotel makes its mark Mail Tribune / Jim Craven photo Banquet server Travis Murdock offers hors d�oeuvres Friday night as guests enter the main ballroom of the newly renovated Ashland Springs Hotel. Ashland Springs gets good reviews on opening night By Sara Murphy ASHLAND � Hundreds of gawkers and First Friday art night walkers flooded through the front doors of the Ashland Springs Hotel this weekend. That�s right: It�s open. The newest old hotel in town was the place to be Friday, when it opened to the public after a two-year, $10 million renovation. From early afternoon till about 10 p.m., people streamed in by the dozens to tour the two-story grand lobby and mezzanine. For opening night, 20 of the 70 guest rooms were occupied. "I think it�s beautiful," said Joey Klein, a mountain bike trail designer visiting from Colorado. "It reminds me of The Raffles Hotel in Singapore. It just has a classic feel to it. "It�s so wonderful when they take something old and keep the history and improve on it," he said. Bellman Peter Koelsch agreed. It�s part of why he applied for the job. The Southern Oregon University sophomore said it�s exciting to be part of the hotel�s much-anticipated opening. He�s even looking forward to wearing a bellhop uniform, which he described as looking like Morgan Freeman�s chauffeur costume in "Driving Miss Daisy." "I love the idea," he said, tipping an imaginary hat. "I think it�s great." The nine-story Lithia Springs Hotel was built in 1925, at a time when Rogue Valley tourism was increasing and Ashland�s Lithia water was its claim to fame. In the 1960s, the hotel was remodeled with an English Tudor theme � to tie into the growing Oregon Shakespeare Festival � and renamed the Mark Antony. Today, the Ashland Springs Hotel has an early 20th-century European feel that merges elements of the building�s past � such as original chandeliers � with a nature theme that remembers Ashland�s "curing" spring waters. Re-creating a "bygone era" was the goal when owners Doug and Becky Neuman purchased the deteriorating hotel at auction in 1998. Leading tours to show off their work, Becky Neuman seemed as awestruck with the results as anyone who strolled in off the street. "It�s a dream come true," she said. The beauty of the hotel, Becky Neuman said, is in the details. "Nothing�s from a catalog, none of it�s prefab," she said, looking down at the lobby from the mezzanine. "We wanted to find original things, so the hotel would have this wonderful character." Original touches include Becky Neuman�s personal collection of brown-and-white transferware china, on display in Elfinwood restaurant, and a custom couch in the lobby, designed from a picture she spied in a European magazine. On opening day, some details were still being hammered out, General Manager Dennis Godfrey said, pointing out a folding service stand in the ballroom. The manufacturer substituted purple straps for black, and that will never do, he said. "We�ve cared about every single detail in this place, so when you get a little bit of purple like this that doesn�t match the decor, it�s irritating," he said. Other opening night details � including the Encore musical group, which dropped in for an impromptu carol � couldn�t have been anticipated. "That�s a lovely coincidence," Becky Neuman said. "I wanted music tonight." Reach Ashland bureau reporter Sara Murphy at 482-4655, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.