Island Acres’ accidental innkeepers to host Business After Hours

Island Acres Resort Motel

The broad lawn and 100-year old cottonwoods surrounding the Island Acres Motel will provide the backdrop for the first Gunnison Country Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours gathering of the year. The event is set for Tuesday, May 24, from 4-6 p.m. just west of Gunnison at 38339 W. Hwy. 50. 

Pam and Tim Cunningham have been the innkeepers at Island Acres for the past 16 years.

“This isn’t what we intended to do, but oftentimes life is what happens when you had other plans,” said Pam Cunningham.

In that time, the couple has put their hearts and time into the longterm “boutique” remodel of Island Acres. The result is a renovation and interior redecoration that genuinely reflects the decor of the heady and optimistic 1950s and 1960s. Pam and Tim have recreated the feel of those times with the real stuff: actual relics from 60-70 years ago that range from real neon lights to 1950s-style chrome and formica tables. 

“I bought my first antiques when I was 18,” Pam said. “So, to have a business that requires me to go antique shopping is not a bad thing at all.”

As Pam is fond of saying, at Island Acres everything has a story to tell.

“Take those 1950s chrome and formica tables,” she said. “All our units have one of those tables. It took me about 15 years of looking to assemble the lot of them. I found them one at a time, and I don’t think any two of them are the same.”

However, while drawing on the past, the Cunninghams’ remodel has put an eye to the future.

“We have focused on environmental concerns as we established our priorities,” Pam said. “We estimate that we’ve reduced the true carbon footprint of Island Acres by 60-75%. We’ve done this not by ‘greenwashing,’ but through physical, operational and equipment changes on the property. In the future we hope to get to carbon neutral through further improvements.”

Pam noted that she and Tim never made plans to purchase a 1954 motel and dedicate themselves to its restoration and operation.

“When we bought Island Acres in 2006, initially we thought we were going to be flippers, tear down the motel and build small high-end homes.”

Their original plan was to build homes according to Sarah Susanka’s “Not so Big” concept, a building philosophy of residential architecture focused on "building better, not bigger." 

According to Susanka, a Not So Big House is approximately a third smaller than a homeowner’s original goal, but actually feels much bigger. It’s not about living in a small house and getting used to feeling cramped.

“That was our plan in 2006, and then there was 2008. It was not the time to go into real estate development,” Cunningham said. “My next book is going to be, ‘The Accidental Innkeeper.’

What started as an accident turned into a passion.

“Now we’re into it,” Cunningham said. “We’ve had offers, but I don’t want to see what others might do with the property. It’s been such a struggle, and now, to pull it back? We’ve worked hard to make Island Acres beautiful. Selling it now would be like handing over my child to someone.”

Here, surrounded by the handiwork of the Cunninghams, the Chamber hopes to see community members come out to the season’s first Community and Business After Hours gathering, to share stories with neighbors and new acquaintances, sample from a tasty spread of food and beverages, take a swing at some yard games, while listening to the music performed by local musicians

“As the current president of the Chamber of Commerce, I speak for our members who want to revitalize Business After Hours,” Cunningham said. “That’s why we are calling this event a Community and Business After Hours. This idea is something that we’ve been talking about for a while, to create more excitement by giving community members an opportunity to engage with local businesses.”

(Paul Wayne Foreman can be reached at paul@gunnisontimes.com.)