On January 22, 2025, Scott Rumbeck with R.R. Cristo Construction met with Ben Swan, the CEO of Swan Development, to discuss Auburn’s Grand Central Hotel located at 1114 J Street. Rumbeck, who plans to bring a team of workers into the area to construct commercial chicken barns around southeast Nebraska, needed a place to lodge those workers for the project duration. Swan was in need of an investment to begin work on renovating the historical building, and with some Auburn Chamber of Commerce’s Leslie Clark’s help, the two connected and struck a deal.
With a deadline of April 30, Swan Development got to work right away, calling in all hands like head of marketing Sarah Darby and Bill Maakestad, the team superintendent and coordinator. Bryan Zimmer with The Architectural Offices out of Omaha is also helping with the refurbishing of the rooms and apartments in the building, as well as with the commercial bay being created in the building’s south half of the ground floor. In around 78 days, the Swan Development team and help has brought the Grand Central Hotel back to habitable status.
On the ground floor of the building are three apartment rooms, one entered through the hotel lobby and the other two entered from the side and back of the building. An ADA compliant bathroom was also added to the lobby. Nine separate rooms make up the top floor, and Swan plans to create three regular rooms, three deluxe rooms and three suites for guests to stay in. For the time being, however, the renovations include new windows and Fire Marshal approved doors, new paint and many, many pressure leaks fixed throughout the building’s boiler systems. New PTAC units were installed and a new roof was put on as well. Once the plastic comes out from the painting, the rooms will be ready to host the R.R. Cristo Construction teams, who plan to lease the lodging for 18 months.
