Arissa Viering | 7/14/2020 | Goodday Mineral Wells | The Baker News & Updates
MINERAL WELLS, TX – After over six months, the Baker Hotel doors have been opened to the public for a tour hosted by the Mineral Wells Area Chamber of Commerce. Palo Pinto County residents who voted in the July Primary Runoff Election were eligible to attend the tour led by the owners and investors of the Baker Hotel.
Coordinated by both the Baker Hotel Group and the Mineral Wells Area Chamber of Commerce, the “Super Tuesday Baker Hotel Tour” event was quickly planned. The groups worked hard to ensure that the event would be in compliance with OSHA regulations and that COVID-19 precautionary measures would be taken.
“We really wanted to encourage people to get out and vote.”
Cody Jordan
Cody Jordan, a coordinator of the tour took pride in the Baker Hotel Group’s decision to open the Baker Hotel doors to the Palo Pinto County voters. “We have so many amazing opportunities in front of us here in Mineral Wells. With all of the economic development, it is really our time to shine and we have to make sure that we have great representation at the state level . . . to make sure that all of these great things happen.”
Walking up the steps and over the threshold inside of the Baker Hotel, visitors noticed many new updates immediately. An old shoe shine station rests in front of re-plastered, white walls in the lobby. Workers prep the windows, labeled with the original floor level and room, to be installed. Images of future restoration plans are displayed in each room of the tour. Various architectural artifacts of the Baker are displayed upon long tables. Power lines braid between the old mail chute rails. Church bells ring in the background and faint echoes can be heard through the halls from some of the Baker Hotel owners as they speak to other tour groups regarding their progress.
“In a grand scale, the hotel has got to be restored architecturally.”
Kurt Thiel
Kurt Thiel, Architectural Designer, is one of the leaders providing updates on the tour within the ballroom. After showing many visitors the echo chamber, Kurt described some of the obstacles that were encountered as he and his wife, Beth Thiel, Interior Designer, worked to design the restoration plans: “As you step out of the elevator, they want it to really feel like what it did in 1929. Because regulations have changed so much in accessibility, the way this building was built doesn’t come close to those clearances – to those ways of how to get on the toilet, or to get into the bathroom or the shower. Those [elements of construction] have a high degree of importance for governmental agencies. We’re doing this tug-o-war with ‘if you want to call it historic, then you have to keep that’ and then ‘honor regulations for accessibility’ . . . You have to walk a tight rope.”
Kurt states that when the Baker opens, a couple of rooms will be historically accurate while most rooms will hold a more luxurious/spacious design to allow for accessibility. Between future weddings, graduation parties, or formal dances, the Baker Hotel ballroom will surely be in high demand.
“We’re really excited that people can come and see the progress that has taken place . . . Being able to see the artifacts – that was really cool. Seeing the moldings and where they came from and the old spa doors. It’s really exciting to see people come out and I think we’re seeing people hopeful about the Baker. This is huge because, for a long time, people said it would never happen. So, to have people come out for the tours means that there’s some hope.”
Rose Jordan, Director of Tourism & Marketing for the Mineral Wells Area Chamber of Commerce
Randy Nix, Local Developer and Partner, has a great amount of passion for the future vision of Mineral Wells and how the Baker Hotel entwines with that future.
“This hotel and the Crazy Water Hotel were built to support the entire community of this town. We ask everybody in the community to help bring this back. We’re doing our part to make this a destination resort again.”
Randy Nix, Local Developer & Partner
The Baker Hotel Group continues to work tremendously hard to restore the Baker Hotel to its former glory. Cody Jordan sums up their dedication to teamwork well: “We’re making the best decisions for our city for long time growth – not just for today, but what is going to happen ten years from now. To everybody in this project, it is very essential that we grow together and that we all get on board. I’m super excited about what’s happening and getting to be a small part of it.”
Based upon many reports from Palo Pinto County residents, it looks as though Rose Jordan was very correct about the Baker Hotel restoration: There is hope.
“I’ve always said that this is ‘The Heart of Mineral Wells’ and, as long as it was dead, Mineral Wells was dead. I said that for forty years and everybody laughed at me. They said ‘nobody could do it.’ Then, Mr. Fairchild took the bull by the horns and it’s great!”
Winford Masterson, Palo Pinto County Resident
To see further highlights of the Baker Hotel tour, check out our video:
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Former Co-Founder | June 2020-Nov 2020 | Graduate of Texas Christian University with a background in medical anthropology, psychology, and creative writing. Passionate about writing novels. Loved the Mineral Wells community and all that it had offered her and her family.
