After sitting vacant during the winter, Libby’s Rodeway Inn might have new owners.

Brenda and Mick Vinson, Libby business owners, have come near to closing on the Rodeway property. The hotel shut down at the turn of the new year, and has been boarded ever since.

Eight people lost their jobs when Boise-based bank, AMRESCO Commercial Finance LLC, foreclosed on the property. The Vinsons expect to close a deal with the bank sometime next week, and will begin construction immediately.

“We plan to open as soon as we can get it freshened up and the plywood off the windows,” Brenda Vinson said. “We’re definitely going to put some money into it.”

The Vinsons declined to say how much the property was going to sell for.

Libby Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Shanda Jennings breathed a sigh of relief when Vinson walked into her office on Wednesday and told her she was buying the property.

“She said she’d be open for STOKR,” Jennings said. “For all the different events during the summer months, this is huge.”

The Rodeway has 42 rooms, and for the STOKR ride, slated May 11 and 12, those might as well be gold-plated.

Libby, a town trying to boost its tourist appeal, draws gads of people to the town in the summer. Another 42 rooms will be full in the summer. 

The Vinsons are planning on some renovations, both for aesthetic appeal and for honest-to-goodness fixes.

The pool is leaky, the roof needs replacement and other fixes need to be made, but the Vinsons plan on forging ahead with renovations. Despite what needs to be fixed, Mick Vinson is sure the job won’t be as difficult as it seems.

“It’s in surprisingly good shape and really clean,” he said. “What hurt it last time is the lack of on-site management.”

While a local manager ran Rodeway in its last iteration, AMRESCO sort of ran it from afar. This made changes on the street nearly impossible to make. The hotel had no website, no 800 number and didn’t allow customers to get Choice points. Rodeway was a national chain, but the location in Libby offered none of the benefits of the chain ownership.

It was a disaster in the making. The Vinsons are trying to keep Libby’s second largest hotel open and under close scrutiny. Mick Vinson said it would employ six people beside his family. 

“We’re definitely going to be involved in the day-to-day,” he said. “We’re also going to upgrade and invest on amenities.”

The Vinsons plan to open doors in the third week of April and have some rooms available while construction continues. Brenda has toyed with the idea of renaming the hotel The Country Inn.

Looking to the months and years ahead, the Vinsons are planning on refurbishing the rooms, buying new beds, flat screen TVs and making the hotel a popular option in town. 

The couple owns Two Bit RV Park and Eagle Rock Motel and previously owned MK Steakhouse for a decade.