THEBACHA/FORT SMITH
Don Resler likes old buildings.
Don Resler is a co-owner of R House Bed and Breakfast in Fort Smith. - Paul Bickford/NNSL photo
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And that goes a long way to explain how Resler - a carpenter by trade - is now the co-owner and operator of R House Bed and Breakfast in Fort Smith.
"I just like old houses," he said. "I like the look of them."
Resler was attracted to what is now R House, which is in a building that dates back to the early 1940s.
"It had character, and I'm in the business of carpentry so I knew what you could turn it into," he said. "It had potential, and, other than what it looked like, it was in good shape. It was solid."
It was originally St. Theresa School, which once stood at the site of the Fort Smith Town Hall before being moved to Cumming Avenue.
The two-room day school operated until the late 1950s and the construction of Joseph Burr Tyrrell School.
When Resler first saw the building, it had not been lived in for years.
"I just kept driving by it and seeing it, and I liked the house," he recalled. "It was neat looking. The yard looked neat. Everybody sort of liked the old place and wanted to do something with it, but to hire a contractor just became too expensive. It was cheaper just to build from scratch."
However, renovation was a financially viable option for him.
"It made sense to me, because that's what I do," he said.
So Resler and Ruth Rolfe, his business partner, purchased the building.
The 'R' which begins both their last names explains the name of the bed and breakfast.
Resler said the house had been basically vacant for up to 10 years before they purchased it, adding the Roman Catholic Church had sold it sometime in the 1980s and two or three other families had bought it and lived there.
After Resler and his business partner bought the building, he started on two years of renovations.
"Pretty much everything got tore apart right down to the bare walls," he said, adding that included new plumbing, electrical, windows, drywall, flooring and siding, plus a new roof.
The renovations also included a new exterior colour - bright yellow.
"I liked the colour. I chose it for myself," said Resler. "It's the brightest you can get, I think."
While he said some people in Fort Smith don't like the colour, others say it makes R House a landmark.
Resler said the exterior of the building doesn't look much like the old school.
"It didn't look like it when I bought it," he said, pointing out there have been a number of changes over the years by the various owners.
Inside the building, Resler said just a few things remain visible from the original school, including a door and stairs to the attic.
There was actually no thought at the beginning of turning the building into a bed and breakfast.
"It was just going to be a house for myself, and it snowballed," said Resler.
The co-owner explained, once the house was renovated, people kept asking if any rooms were for rent.
"Initially, we were just going to rent out the basement or whatever," he said. "I don't know how it got to the point of doing a bed and breakfast. It just evolved into that."
Resler also expanded and renovated the attic, where he now lives, leaving the main floor and the basement for guests of the bed and breakfast.
R House, which has four bedrooms for guests, opened about three years ago.
Resler does the day-to-day operation of the business, while Rolfe, who lives in Alberta, handles the bookings and paperwork.
As a co-owner and operator, Resler said he enjoys the role, adding that he basically leaves the guests alone to their privacy because most of them are in Fort Smith on business.
"People are really good that stay here," he said. "They're not like the party crowd. They do their own thing. It really isn't an inconvenience. It's nice having somebody around. I've never had any problems."
Resler said most guests are looking for a house-like atmosphere, rather than a hotel atmosphere.
The 58-year-old, who is originally from Edmonton, has lived in Fort Smith for 12 years.
His full-time job is as a carpenter with CAB Construction.
Resler said, even though he has that full-time work, he has no trouble finding enough time to be the on-site operator of R House.
