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Ben Eberhardt runs recently renovated Colgate Inn
It was late last Friday afternoon, with a big weekend ahead
for the Colgate Inn, and manager Ben Eberhardt was only three
days into the job.
The 500 ears of corn for the next day's sidewalk feast had
been shucked, but now there were guests to be checked in and
arrangements to be made for two unrelated events the next
day: a wedding in the dining room and an Elvis impersonator
performing on the sidewalk.
In the middle of it all, Eberhardt took a break to conduct
a tour of the newly renovated inn and to talk of his dreams
for the place. As he sat on a sofa in the cherry-walled parlor,
a co-worker issued a playful warning.
"You'd better not sit down," a voice called to
Eberhardt from across the room. "You might fall asleep."
Sleep wasn't in the picture yet, though. Eberhardt, who grew
up in the hospitality business at his father's Sherwood Inn
in Skaneateles, had too much work to do.
Eberhardt's father, William, was tapped by Colgate University
earlier this year to operate the historic inn located in the
middle of Hamilton's business district. Ben Eberhardt, who
left the Army last year after 12 years of service and an ascent
to the rank of major, has brought his family and expertise
to Hamilton.
Bringing the Eberhardts to town is part of Colgate's continuing
effort to make Hamilton's business district more inviting.
For the past dozen years or so, the inn was run by multinational
management companies. Last year, the inn was put under the
wing of the Hamilton Initiative, the Colgate subsidiary charged
with renovating downtown.
"Colgate Inn is incredibly important to us," said
university President Rebecca Chopp. "It's the front door
for our campus. It's where prospective students and parents
stay."
Eberhardt, 34, got his start in the hospitality business
at age 13, washing dishes at the Sherwood Inn. Through high
school and college, he did it all.
"I've done dishwashing to barkeeping to waiting - every
position, and, in some cases, management," he said.
He's already at home at the Colgate Inn.
"I absolutely love the satisfaction that comes with
customer service," he said. "I greet each guest
as they come in the door and walk them out when they leave."
Eberhardt likes to be out and about in the inn. The administrative
offices are in the building next door, but he doesn't plan
to spend much time there. Instead, he'll have a countertop
and a few drawers installed in the inn.
"I don't need anything more than that," he said.
"I can't stand the office."
The inn, built in 1925, was slated for demolition in the
1970s until it was bought by a local group and transferred
to Colgate. Earlier this year, the university completed a
$500,000 renovation that included the front parlor, a new
lobby and a remodeled basement conference room.
Eberhardt launches his tour in the newly remodeled parlor.
He heads downstairs to show off the basement room, called
the Salmagundi room, and talks of plans to convert it into
a rathskeller that would appeal to Colgate students.
Asked what Salmagundi means, Eberhardt pauses. He tries to
recall the explanation given by one of his employees, a Colgate
graduate.
"But I'm so tired," he said, smiling, "I can't
remember what she told me."
(Salmagundi has been the name of the college's yearbook since
1934, according to the university's Web site. It means "miscellany"
or "medley," and was originally a book of lists
of faculty, fraternities and other groups.)
On the way outside, Eberhardt greets an employee who is heading
out the door.
"You taking off, Bob?" Eberhardt asks. "Done
shucking all that corn?"
Eberhardt comes to life as he steps outside the back of the
inn and gestures toward the expanse of lawn between the inn
and the parking lot. Shade from the building, blocking the
setting sun, is already deepening the grass.
"I go nuts when I come back here because it has so much
potential," Eberhardt said, envisioning a patio filled
with tables filled with diners enjoying their meal and the
fresh air. "People love to eat outside."
That's all in the future, though. Right now, Eberhardt is
busy just running the 46-room inn. He's hoping it will become
a town-gown connection.
"I think we're going to have a place where both the
local community - university and non-university - can come
enjoy great food in a very comfortable atmosphere," he
said.
Eberhardt is already part of that community. He and his wife,
Kristen, and their two children, ages 7 and 2, have moved
to Hamilton.
His family is what compelled him to leave the Army and return
to the family business, Eberhardt said.
"I felt I had done my duty," he said. "I decided
after my son was born that I had only seen my family for six
months of the last two years. I always was interested in the
(hospitality) business, and I decided it was time to go back
into it."
© 2004 The Post-Standard. Used with permission.
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