Historic Burge Hotel sold to Thunderstone Construction

The historic Burge Hotel at 230 N. Interocean Ave. was sold Jan. 3 to Brett Cumming of Thunderstone Construction, changing hands after 25 years of ownership by Phillip and Carolyn Wirges.

Cumming is a 2013 Holyoke High School graduate, and he said his plan on buying it was to turn it into an apartment complex, but he said it will still likely be a hotel at least for the next three years.

“We need rentals here, so I’m going to renovate to get long-term rentals,” Cumming said.

He plans to start renovating sometime in February to have two more apartments by the end of March. He said right now there are seven month-to-month apartments at the Burge, four of which are occupied.

Cumming is no stranger to renovation or building. He is currently working on building his third house, which is in Haxtun, and he has built a duplex and a house in Holyoke.

He said it has always been his goal to have apartments in Holyoke. He also purchased the lot across Interocean Avenue from the Burge, but he’s not yet sure what will go there.

Cumming said he will continue to work hard to keep the Burge up, and he noted that anyone looking for long-term apartments can call him at 970-854-2261.

Carolyn Wirges reflects on time as owner

Carolyn said it was the right time to sell as she and Phillip head toward retirement.

“We brought the building back to life,” she said. “I got to meet a lot of great people.”

She added that there were a lot of fun small-world coincidences at the hotel, such as meeting people who were from where she grew up or knew people she knew, and the hunters were always great to get along with.

Carolyn said that different things pushed the Burge at the right time, such as the construction of Melissa Memorial Hospital and the Cobblestone Inn & Suites.

“I just had to be flexible. It was a good job for 25 years,” she said.

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