Contributed by: Sandi Mulconry / Group M Communications

One day in November 1999, Toni and Curt Feldmann were driving west on Route 20, heading to Auburn to buy steamed clams. They passed the dilapidated Anchor Motel and noticed it was for sale.

Neither had experience in the hospitality industry. Toni was a controller/accountant who had lost her job to a corporate buyout; Curt sold hardware.

No matter. The couple bought the motel the following morning. Within six months, they had converted 12 small rooms into six “savvy traveler bungalows,” offering super-premium bedding, kitchenette, private patio, ceramic baths, stereo and cable TV; WiFi was added later. Many of the rooms have two-person Jacuzzi tubs.

Now, 10 years later, the motel has grown to become Skaneateles Suites & Boutique Hotel http://www.skaneatelessuites.com , and the Feldmanns have hosted more than 15,000 guests at their properties on Route 20 and at 12 Fennell St. Toni is innkeeper and Curt is captain of the Suite Dreams Team, vice president of guest relations and “the laundry guy.”

Contributed by Christine Briel / Skaneateles Design

Cary Briel and Curtis Feldmann have been working closely together over the past few months on everything from photos, to property management concepts, to Google maps and now Skaneateles Suites has launched a brand new “LOOK” for their website. Take a look at their new website by either clicking on the picture above or clicking on this link. Now you can get a very cohesive feel for their “Collection of places to stay in Skaneateles” right on the home page. Also, not to be missed is the Skaneateles Suites blog which is a champion among blogs for the local FingerLakes region. They work hard to get just about any and every local event added to their blog. A very useful tool for visitors coming to the area as well as locals looking for something to do on the weekend.

Great job Curt and Cary!

Secret Places

We Live Here and We Love IT! Best of all we willing to show you why!

Secret Places is a customized walking / driving tour FREE to anyone who asks. (Of course if you’re a registered guest at one of our Skaneateles Suites properties, you will get the really good stuff!)

Free for asking, just walk up to any member of the Suite Dreams Team. Then, you tell us about your interests; wineries, history, shopping, outdoor adventure, sitting on bar stools or, well, you tell us.

Then we scratch our heads and give you a walking or driving map of some very cool Secret Places to Go and See or Do. Best of all, it’s FREE!

This article was contributed by Curt Feldmann / SkaneatelesSuites

Two-fer Response; David vs Goliath (Girl)

In the April 23, 2008 edition of the Skaneateles Press, Ellen Leahy ( eleahy@cnylink.com ) wrote an ‘opinion’ about her fond memory of ‘A Feldmann’. I would reprint the article here, but I cannot find it at their http://www.cnylink.com page. It was a funny, but slammy, rememberance of Ellen and her friend at a local bar (30 years ago) being approached by one of the Feldmann Boys, being offered ‘a beer’, and then 1 beer for 2 girls being delivered.

What makes a girls’ night different from other nights? Maximum girlieness. How you define that depends on how your group likes to bond.

One teriffic idea is the Main House at The Skaneateles Suites; sleeps up to eight Girls in four Bedrooms. Smaller number of Girls? Try a Bungalow.

Secret Places

Skaneateles, New York; We Live Here and We Love IT! Best of all we willing to show you why!

Secret Places is a customized walking / driving tour FREE to anyone who asks. (Of course if you’re a registered guest at one of our http://www.skaneatelessuites.com Properties you will get the really good stuff!)

Free for asking, just walk up to any member of the Suite Dreams Team. Then, you tell us about your interests; wineries, history, shopping, outdoor adventure, sitting on bar stools or, well, you tell us.

There is a story here.

Several years ago we took some of the Suite Dreams Staff to Mexico for an incentive contest vacation. With us was Dwain, our Property Manager and ‘Fixit Guy’. Our hotel had these towel origami swans, and Dwain thought that was way cool. He tried to get the ‘girls’ to add this to our rooms, but they (the ‘girls’) all ducked and bobbed and weaved and, well, basically refused.

So Dwain got a book and got to work making swans and dogs and top-hats and more, basically shaming them (the ‘girls’). Today, Dwain still trains the new ‘Guest-Keepers’ (we don’t have ‘maids’) and occasionaly spot checks the rooms for Swan Origami Quality Control.

Skaneateles Village is a Storybook

Skaneateles, New York Finger Lakes Region of Upstate New York, 13152

Officially designated a “Stress Free Zone”, the Village is a storybook of shops, restaurants and of course, Skaneateles Lake. From the Wooden Boat Show to Skaneateles Festival to Charles Dickens Christmas, travelers of all ages will fall in love. Wineries and Vineyards of the Fingerlakes Region are only minutes away, as well as historical museums, galleries and theatre. Relax, you’re in the Village

Nestled in the heart of the Finger Lakes Region, Skaneateles Suites offers a variety of lodging options. Stay at our boutique hotel, bungalow suites, apartments, or in one of our rental vacation homes.On your weekend getaway or vacation in Skaneateles, visit the shops and restaurants in the Village, walk along Lake Skaneateles, and tour wineries of the Finger Lakes Region. Enjoy!

By Curt Feldmann / Skaneateles Suites
Sunday, September 23, 2007 3:45 PM EDT

Who reads these, anyway? What is it that makes us so passionate about ourselves and our community?

I started in May 2006 because I didn’t know what a Blog was, and Trent Blizzard at http://www.blizzardinternet.com told me it would be good for business. (He was right, it is).