Historic Building to Feature New Vacation Rental in Downtown Holdrege

Downtown Holdrege is experiencing a revival, and soon visitors will be able to enjoy staying right in the action in a second-floor vacation rental thanks to a local business.

Riteway Milk, 815 4th Ave, started an upper-floor renovation of its historic building this summer. 

James Stewart, Riteway Milk owner and vice president, said they originally wanted to create a downtown apartment but recently decided on a vacation rental instead.

“We figured with the apartment being downtown, more people would get to enjoy the downtown experience,” Stewart said. “Multiple people would be able to stay there instead of just one resident or family.”

The two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment will accommodate six people. The 1,500 space includes a full kitchen, a dining and living area, washer/dryer and tall ceilings. It will also include a reserved parking spot next to the building. 

The upper-floor renovation includes a full demolition of the existing space, electrical and plumbing upgrades, tearing out the lath and plaster and replacing it with drywall, and replacing windows and fixtures. Local contractors on the job included Integrity Construction, Trent's Electric, Groothuis Plumbing, and Dwellings by Emily.

The Stewarts renovated the main floor office space when they purchased the historic building in 2019 from Dier, Osborn and Cox attorneys. The building was built in 1898 and was originally the Holdrege City Hall and Firehouse. 

Riteway Milk specializes in dairy transportation services. The company currently serves six regional dairies by managing pick-up and delivery logistics to processing plants in Ft. Morgan, CO; Wichita, KS; Hutchison, KS; and Omaha, NE. Riteway is a family-owned local business and has 12 full-time employees. It has been in business for more than 75 years. The Stewarts purchased the business from the Geer family.

PCDC is helping with the upper-floor renovation project through its GO! DREAM building integrity matching grant, a GO! HOME site improvement/demolition matching grant, and a GO! HOME code compliance grant.

“These renovations can be pretty expensive, so those grants really helped,” Stewart said.

The Stewarts are hoping the renovations will be completed in time for visitors to rent the downtown living space by Christmas. Watch for rental opportunities on Airbnb and VRBO.