INUVIK - The Caribou Cafe will have to move out of the Eskimo Inn by the end of the month.

Cafe owner Trudy Marks said her husband and business partner Patrick Gesret received the news a couple of weeks ago from Vince Brown, a member of Mackenzie Delta Hotel Group, which owns the hotel.

Trudy Marks, owner of Caribou Cafe, will be in search of a new home for her business at the end of the month. - Andrew Rankin/NNSL photo

Marks said her husband was told by Brown that the group was considering leasing the motel to Dowland Contracting, which is currently working on major construction projects in town. According to Marks, the company would use the motel to accommodate employees from out of town. The couple had one month left on their lease, but will be reimbursed by the ownership group.

The Mackenzie Delta Hotel Group did not return repeated phone calls for comment. A representative from Dowland Contracting could not be reached for comment by press time.

Marks said she's disappointed to leave the location, but realizes the motel's owners had to do something to pay the bills since it had been closed shortly after the new year. She and her husband are hoping to set up shop again by August, depending on whether they can find a suitable space and order in equipment on time. Staff members will be laid off in the meantime.

The pair will take a few weeks off after closing to recharge.

"I don't know what to do right now," said Marks. "I'm just very appreciative of the people here who supported us for many years.

"We have to finish this month and then focus on something else."

The pair purchased the restaurant three years ago. She said business has gone well since then.

Mayor Denny Rodgers said he is disappointed to see such a popular restaurant close, adding he understands the owner's interest in leasing the space. He said the move is a sign of hard times that have befallen Inuvik, particularly the oil and gas sector.

Rodgers is hoping the Inuvik-Tuk Highway will soon be approved, and open more jobs in town. He added all the construction projects slated for Inuvik are a positive sign.

"If Dowland decides it's going to use (the motel), then they have enough work to fill it up," the mayor said. "We have $200 million in construction happening here right now. That's a good thing."