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BUSINESS AND REAL ESTATE — JUNE 2023 15 JUNE 29-JULY 5, 2023 BUSINESS & REAL ESTATE Necessity is the mother of invention, and perhaps rein- vention, too. After 134 years in business in Ouray, The Bon Ton Restaurant is no exception. Located at 426 Main St., The Bon Ton has witnessed the rise and fall of the area’s mining industry, seen the last train leave town and served countless guests since relocating to the St. Elmo Hotel’s basement in 1898. Yet even the most established businesses occasionally require a facelift. A change in restau- rant management last October provided the opportunity to modernize the restaurant for the rst time in nearly 40 years. Reclaimed barn wood replaced outdated carpet. Floral wall- paper gave way to beige paint and copper trim. Original stone walls that served as the stables before 1898 were scoured clean. And walls were knocked down to open the oor plan. After buying the restaurant 10 years ago, St. Elmo co-own - ers and father and son David Baggett and Blake Baggett had plenty of time to think about the direction they wanted to take it in. “It was a long time coming from the time we bought it,” Blake said. “We just wanted to give it a fresh look, bring it up to date and make it our own.” While the restaurant has only been reopened for ve weeks now, Blake said he was pleased with the contractors’ work. He’s not alone. According to Adam Walters, who became The Bon Ton’s front house manager in March, diners have given the six-month-long remodel positive reviews so far. “We had some people who celebrated their honeymoon here 42 years ago and spent their 42nd anniversary here (recent- ly) as well,” Walters said. “They were very happy and pleased with the renovations.” In addition to the aesthetic changes, upgrades to the kitch- en and bar areas have allowed The Bon Ton to experiment with its o erings. The results are already noticeable. “There was de nitely some good money spent in terms of upgrades,” Walters said. “I feel like now we have the room to do what we want in the kitchen. We’re able to get a few more guys on the line when needed.” A 26-year restaurant industry veteran, Walters helped rede- sign the food and drink menus to match the kitchen and bar renovations. As a result, the kitchen now sources 90% of its ingredients from local farms and ranches to support local businesses and serve the freshest food possible while minimizing cost. Brunch features a variety of sweet and savory dishes. O er - ings range from ricotta pancakes and French toast topped with fresh berries to frittatas, eggs benedict, burgers and shrimp and grits. Mimosas and 10 citrus and co ee cocktails round out the menu. Dinner is a more extravagant a air that pays tribute to The Bon Ton’s roots. “We weren't trying to reinvent the wheel or anything, but we're trying to go back to like the sign says: Italian cuisine. So it's more By Daniel Schmidt daniel@ouraynews.com A NEW TAKE ON AN OLD CLASSIC Daniel Schmidt — Ouray County Plaindealer St. Elmo Hotel co-owners and father and son David Baggett (left) and Blake Baggett now own and oversee The Bon Ton Restaurant with Madison Gustafson (center) after a change in management last October. After a signi cant remodel, The Bon Ton reopened to customers last month. Under new management, Ouray's 134-year-old Bon Ton o ers rustic Italian cuisine in remodeled space Tim Currin Owner Broker MCNE • CRB • CRS • GRI 970.389.0002 tim@ouraybrokers.com Carl Cockle Broker Associate 970.729.2268 cacouray@gmail.com Candace Anderson Associate/Broker 414.248.1174 candace@ouraybrokers.com Deb Currin Associate/Broker 970.389.0231 deb@ouraybrokers.com K • E • H 257 Sherman Street “A” Ridgway, CO 81432 970.325.0300 Ready to SELL? We Have You Covered! Tax revenue from sales in April climbed to an all-time high in Ouray for the month, while hotel bookings and lodging tax revenue fell again, as the city motors toward the most hectic part of the summer tourism season. The city collected $131,371 in tax revenue from April sales, a 9% jump over the same month last year. That revenue re ects sales activity in April, which is then remitted to the city in May and reported in June. Through the rst four months of the year, Ouray has pulled in more than $603,000 in sales tax receipts, about 2.5% more than the same period last year. “As you’ll recall 2020 was a banner year. 2021 was better than that. 2022 was better than that. And now we’re ahead in 2023,” Melissa Drake, city nance and administrative ser - vices director, told city council- ors during a June 20 meeting. The number of hotel and motel rooms and campground spots booked fell more than 17% in April, from 4,285 to 3,535. It’s the third time in four months that year-over-year reservations were down. Through the rst four months, reservations have dropped near- ly 9%, from 26,561 room nights to 24,214. Drake said she suspects a cool, snowy April factored into the reduction in bookings. Revenue from the city’s 3.5% lodging tax also declined more than 17% in April, from $18,466 to $15,192. Year to date, reve- nue is o by 2%, slipping from $114,122 to $111,780. Revenue from the city’s 15% tax on short-term rentals is also down. The city collected $6,674 in April, 7.5% less than it did in April 2022. Through the rst four months of the year, Ouray pulled in nearly $96,000, about 2% less than the same time last year. On the plus side, the Ouray Hot Springs Pool had a banner May, thanks largely to work that cleaned sludge out of the Box Cañon geothermal line, the primary line that serves the pool. After three straight months of year-over-year de- clines in visitation, more than 10,600 people visited the pool last month, an 11% jump over May 2022. And the city pulled in a record amount of revenue for the month of May: more than $208,000, a whopping 45% more than the same time last year. City contracts for planning services Councilors unanimously agreed to pay Durango-based Short Elliot Hendrickson Inc. up to $20,000 to provide contract planning services through the end of the year. The city will use the contractor to handle a variety of planning duties after last month’s resig- nation of Community Develop- ment Director Lily Oswald. By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com Sales tax up, lodging tax down in April in Ouray SEE BON TON ON PAGE 19