Yellowknife (Apr 21/04) - Room renovations at the Yellowknife Inn have been happening so fast that some customers don't recognize the place.

Unaware the rooms on the third and fourth floors of the Inn were undergoing a $1.1 million facelift, two customers from Kugluktuk/Coppermine recently went down to the front desk to complain.

"They'd been here two weeks before and they came down to the front desk and said that we'd put them in the wrong room," said Arvin Landry, maintenance manager at the Inn.

The renovations are the first changes at the inn in 10 to 15 years, said inn general manager Walter Bradley.

The project includes new furniture, paint, wallpaper and energy-efficient windows. The fourth floor is already complete and the third is a work in progress, said Landry.

"We've already noticed a big difference in terms of the rooms where the windows have been changed," he said, noting the new windows seem to make the rooms warmer.

The old furniture was dark in colour. The new lighter beige and white coloured paint and furniture was chosen by three staff members, said Landry.

The entire job should be completed in three months.

The new furniture is being stored in a vacant area in Centre Square Mall until the rooms are all ready to go.