WHAT:  Town Hall Meeting to discuss the concerns regarding the Old  Ram Hotel (Sidwell Hotel)

WHEN:  5:00 PM to 6:30 PM on Monday, May 19, 2014 

WHERE: Cith Hall, 1 Main Street, Rio Vista, CA  

The owners of the former Sidwell Hotel—David Pfaff and Dr. Stanley Dintcho—have agreed to participate in a Town Hall to address concerned citizens. 

During the Final Presentation of the R/UDAT in March, a citizen addressed the audience of 300+, suggesting that something needed to be done with with the former Hotel. While no one disagreed, many citizens are not aware of the history or the steps that the current owners have taken to move their project along. 

The agenda will include the owners’ previous plans, and forward-looking ideas for the blighted property.  Students from Consumnes River College will be on hand to exhibit their renderings for this property.

History of the Hotel

John Sidwell opened the Hotel Sidwell in 1862—a first for Rio Vista. He ran the hotel until his death in 1882, at which point, his wife, Annie took over operations until her passing in 1901.  Their daughter’s husband Murray L. Isham then became the proprietor.

After a devastating fire destroyed the majority of buildings in Rio Vista’s downtown on July 20, 1892—including the hotel—Annie was the first to commence work by hiring E.B. Wilson to erect a new hotel. This structure was two stories, with the ground floor measuring 30 x 58 feet and the second floor measuring 30 x 44 feet. The front section of the hotel was added sometime between 1900 – 1920.

The hotel lobby was always the section on the corner. The other ground floor storefronts have housed a variety of businesses through the years. The adjacent parking lot housed the Sidwell Garage, a mechanics garage. For a brief period, Abel Chevrolet was using the garage. The storefront on the left side (ground floor) was the office for the mechanic shop.

For many years the hotel housed a dining hall and restaurant. Again, in the 1980’s there was a fire that damaged the front section of the second floor.

Questions: 408.332.3552

This program is sponsored by RioVision

Alert sent on 05/06/2014 at 8:00PM EDT

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