pdf version - Egremont Hotel

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THE REDWATER TRIBUNE
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2007
Egremont Hotel celebrates 60 years
BY GINA MACARTHUR
STAFF WRITER
With a base population of 61 people, Egremont is not
exactly a bustling metropolis. Despite that, there is a business in the tiny hamlet northeast of Redwater that has
been thriving for 60 years.
The Egremont Hotel opened on December 1, 1947, just
as Alberta was embarking on its first oil boom. The sudden influx of industrial workers helped build the hotel
and tavern into a successful business for its original owners, John and Doreen Hunchak and their children. One of
their sons, also named John, was on hand this past weekend as the hotel celebrated its 60th birthday, and he reminisced about the building he helped construct.
"I was here the first day it opened up and I drank the
first beer from the tap," he said with a smile. "It hasn't
changed
much."
Hunchak
recalled
just
how
Alberta's
first
oil
boom had
fuelled the
business in
the
early
days.
"During
the oil boom
there was a
John and Lucy Hunchak with current lot of people
owners
Graham
and
Colleen in
this
Waterman. John Hunchak helped build town," he
said.
the hotel in 1947.
"Building crews were coming in and pipeline crews
and people of all sorts, you name it," he said. "(They
would) get into the bar and get feeling good and start an
argument and the next thing you know they're outside
slugging it out," he smiled.
Hunchak's family sold the hotel in 1950 to a man from
Edmonton, but he still has many fond memories of the
place. Looking around the tavern he noted the place had
not changed much.
If you took away the modern trucks
and cars parked in front of the hotel
this weekend, the simple two-storey
wood frame structure would look
much the same as it did in the 1940s.
The first floor used to have a dining
room and a tavern, but now it is
known simply as the Watermelon
Patch, a local watering hole that draws
people from as far away as Edmonton,
nearly an hour down the highway.
The owners, Graham and Colleen
Waterman, are still reaping the benefits of an oil boom, as oilfield workers
often book the hotel's four rooms. The
clientele includes people from all
walks of life. "When the weather's good people come out
from St. Albert and the city with their toys, bikes and convertibles and all that stuff," said Graham. "We've even got
a hitching rail out back, because we get some people who
come on horseback."
Graham came to Alberta from Waterford, England in
1976 to work in Fort McMurray. There he met and married
Colleen, who hails from Edmonton, and four years ago
they left the oilfield and bought the Egremont Hotel. The
tavern's name is a play on Graham's nickname
'Watermelon' and their patrons have begun bringing them
all things watermelon to decorate the place.
Graham, who admits his experience with bars was
strictly as a patron, says owning a hotel and tavern has
been an eye-opening experience.
"It's more than we thought it would be. We're pretty
well locked in 24/7. We've made a lot of good friends,
which is the upside," he said. "We've got a lot of great
customers."
The Egremont
Hotel
under
construction
(left) in 1947.
Below, the hotel
as it stands
today.
A Little Taste of Italy
~ Dine In
~ Take Out
610 - 1 Street, Thorhild
398-2266
Wednesday, August 22, 2007 — Bowes Publishers — 460-8868 — Vol. 26 No. 34
e-mail: [email protected]
NEWS
Gina MacArthur/
Redwater Tribune
FIRST READING
Public Hearing set for
landfill
3
AGRICULTURE
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Soldier bears
Rosemary Neathway of the Redwater Ladies’ Auxiliary was selling soldier bears for the Edmonton Garrison Military
Family Resource Centre at Redwater Discovery Days. More photos on page 6 and 7.
Sturgeon mayor seeks re-election
■ County needs continuity,
says Hinteregger
HONDA FIT LX
REDUCED
BY GINA MACARTHUR
STAFF WRITER
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Just 10 minutes North of St. Albert on Hwy. 2 in Morinville Business Park
www.frontierhonda.ab.ca
780-939-3666 toll free 1-888-465-6632
We perform service and warranty work on all HONDA cars regardless of where they were purchased.
We offer service while you wait, free courtesy cars, and a complimentary wash.
60 YEARS
Egremont Hotel
celebrates
12
Gina MacArthur/Redwater Tribune
Sturgeon
County
Mayor
Helmut
Hinteregger has officially joined the race for
his own seat on county council.
Hinteregger has been mayor for the last
three years, after serving two terms as a councillor.
"I am ready, willing and able to provide my
nine years of council experience, my 40 years of
business experience and my personal values
and integrity to this wonderful community," he
said, in a media release last week.
Hinteregger says the county needs continuity of leadership in order to move forward suc-
cessfully.
"We're in the midst of some projects right
now and they require the continued involvement of the people that have been involved
both in terms of the leadership and the council
members," he said. "We're going to be embarking on a new municipal development plan early
in the new year and, as well, we have to enter
into some of the development agreements with
the upgraders when they decide to proceed."
Hinteregger said it's also important to maintain some continuity in respect to the province's
regional sustainability plan.
"It needs someone...who has been involved
over a number of years both with the Alberta
Capital Region Alliance and the province. I
think it’s important for us to not only maintain
but to improve the relationships between the
regional municipalities and that's why I need to
be there," he said.
To date, only one opponent has declared his
intention to oppose Hinteregger. Current
deputy mayor Don Rigney cited increasing
council secrecy and rising taxes as issues that
helped him decide to run.
Hinteregger pointed out that the county still
has the lowest taxes in the region, and some
issues have to be handled behind closed doors,
especially those that deal with business proposals.
"If we didn't (deal with companies in-camera) we could be accused of interfering in the
business practices of those companies," he said.
As for increasing taxes, Hinteregger said
diversifying the county's tax base with commercial and industrial development will help
keep residential taxes low.
"Over the next three years there's going to be
challenges, but we're going to be working those
challenges out in terms of not putting our
ratepayers' money at risk," he said.
Voters go to the polls on October 15.