Historic Cloquet Hotel Solem Undergoing Renovations

CLOQUET, Minn.– The 25,000 square foot building was once used to house workers who rebuilt the city of Cloquet after the tragic fire of 1918.

But present day, after it was condemned in 2022, renovating the hotel is a challenge other groups passed on.

With its age, Hotel Solem is bringing a list of hurdles developer C&C Holdings is beginning to tackle.

“The challenge is always trying to take something that has predetermined space and a wall and reuse that and actually make it something that can be cost effective,” said Chad Scott, owner of C&C Holdings.

Construction workers are gutting all three floors, as well as bolstering and stabilizing the building.

The roof has been replaced to keep water intrusion at bay.

Asbestos and lead concerns are also being handled.

“Obviously as you can see behind me has repaired the east wall face. Which is one of the critical reasons why the city of Cloquet condemned the building and came into ownership. Because that wall was not stable,” explained Holly Hansen, Cloquet’s Community Development Director.

The project was approved by the Cloquet City Council last spring.

The city was awarded $87,000 from a state grant to remove the containments inside the hotel.

Holly Hansen is thankful someone finally took on this project.

“We were very pleased to find C&C Holdings of Cloquet, AMI Engineering and Nordic Group to help further that goal. The Solem Hotel obviously the city was not interested in having that torn down. It’s more important to save buildings and reuse them,” said Hansen.

The estimated cost of the renovation is nearly 4 million dollars.

The apartments will range from studios to 2-bedroom units.

And a new elevator and sprinkler system will be installed.

“We’ve gone through the majority of the demo which is where you open up a lot of the problems and issues, right? Because we’ve gotten through most of that of that, we feel that most of those hurdles were over right now. So, moving forward there shouldn’t be any huge surprises for us,” said Scott.

Hansen said the Solem Apartments will play a role in the need for more downtown Cloquet housing.

That being said, it’s also playing a vital role with saving a building with unforgettable history.

“I think the people of Cloquet are shocked that we have found someone who can repair the building. And there’s a lot of discussion all over Carlton County I would say of people driving past and really just surprised that this project is underway,” said Hansen.

“I grew up here. So, I grew up in the area. And so, I remember being here as a child in Cloquet. I remember the area so being a part to bring something back, helping the local community is a big part of why we’re doing this as well,” explained Scott.

Chad Scott one of the main developers said some apartments will be ready by August.

And they’re hoping everything will be done in October.