VALDOSTA — La Quinta has reopened for business, after 21 months of being closed. 

The 121-room hotel was temporarily closed after a florescent light exploded in the ballast in the laundry room at 3 a.m. Dec. 28, 2016, said Rick Oelkers, general manager.

Since then, La Quinta has used the money it received from the insurance claim to remodel and rebuild its lobby, he said. The fire destroyed all the trusses, so it gave the hotel an opportunity to take a bad situation and turn it into a positive for the community.

The new lobby has an open build to it. Before the fire, the ceiling was 10 feet from the ground, Oelkers said. The new lobby has a pitched ceiling that is much higher.

Oelkers said the owner wanted the new lobby to be something “grand” and to have “wow factor.”

Along with repairing the lobby, Oelkers said the hotel has performed minor repairs all throughout the hotel, removed the carpet from the first floor rooms and replaced it with planks, replaced the kitchen equipment, put in new energy efficient washers and dryers and more.

The change in the flooring is to better accommodate pets, he said.

“We are pet friendly and with pets peeing on the floor with carpet it is hard to get the smell out of the rooms,” he said.

The hotel also changed some of the carpeting out as well, he said. The new carpeting is placed in sections so that if the carpet needs to be replaced, parts of it can be pulled out.

The hotel offers other amenities including a pool, a hot tub and a manager’s reception 6-8 p.m. Monday through Saturday. The reception includes free beer and wine, soft drinks, ice cream, fresh baked cookies and other snacks for guests.

During the closure, Oelkers said he was able to keep most of his staff on payroll.

“The majority of staff stayed on and did painting in rooms and laid tile,” he said. “We used everybody to the fullest extent possible, so as to keep everyone on payroll so they could still make ends meet while we were closed.”

Oelkers extended a thank you to the community and the City of Valdosta.

“I want to thank everyone for their support while we were closed, and we are here for their needs,” he said. “Thank you to J. H. Strickland, our contractor, for doing such a great job and to the City of Valdosta for doing the inspections and getting the plans approved. Their cooperation was second to none.”

La Quinta, 1800 Club House Drive, is open 24/7. 

Jason Smith is a reporter at The Valdosta Daily Times. He can be contacted at 229-244-3400 ext.1257.