Keltic Lodge building closures spark worry in Ingonish, N.S., area

It's considered one of the crown jewels of the Cape Breton Highlands, but now the Keltic Lodge - or at least, a large portion of it - has been closed indefinitely.

GolfNorth, the company that has run the Ingonish, N.S.m resort in conjunction with Parks Canada in recent years, said in a news release Wednesday it decided to close the main lodge and several cottages at the iconic property because the aging buildings had significant structural problems.

Victoria County Deputy Warden Larry Dauphinee said on Thursday the Keltic is a critical piece of the community, and it shouldn't have come to this.

"Kind of shocked, disappointed, disgusted,” Dauphinee said of his reaction to news of the closures. "I guess my issue is that it's deteriorated so fast under Golf North's management in the last couple of years. What it would have cost to fix nine or 10 years ago before they took over, it's probably quadrupled since then. "

Terry Smith, the head of Destination Cape Breton, said while losing several dozen rooms will have a short-term impact, the bigger picture hope is the Keltic Lodge will be restored.

"You know, it's a really sad day,” said Terry Smith. "We just hope that all the parties involved are going to work to bring it back to its former glory."

GolfNorth told CTV News Atlantic on Thursday that as far as it is concerned, this not the end of an era at Keltic Lodge.

Regional vice-president Doug Breen said while it would cost tens of millions of dollars to bring the buildings up to code, he sees the closure as “short-term pain, for long-term gain.”

He noted nothing is off the table for what to do with the site, but indicated there aren't any concrete proposals yet either.

"This is a good news story in the end,” Breen said. "I want to say we have a plan, even though we don't know exactly what that plan is. But we do have a plan to really make this something that we can all be proud of in the end."

While about half of the resort's rooms remain open as normal, Dauphinee worries those that are closed will create an accommodations crunch this summer.

"They (visitors) are going to be travelling through, they're not going to find a place to stay,” he said.

GolfNorth said the plan is to work with Parks Canada and local stakeholders on a new vision for the entire peninsula.

Keltic Lodge has been one of Cape Breton’s most popular tourist destinations for decades. The main lodge opened in 1951.

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