{"id":59727,"date":"2025-10-07T14:39:17","date_gmt":"2025-10-07T18:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/?p=59727"},"modified":"2025-10-07T14:39:19","modified_gmt":"2025-10-07T18:39:19","slug":"la-tourelle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alumni.cornell.edu\/cornellians\/la-tourelle\/","title":{"rendered":"Backed by (Many!) Big Red Investors, a Famed Ithaca Inn Is Reborn"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More than two dozen alums teamed up to buy and renovate La Tourelle, a venerable boutique hotel and spa on South Hill<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Beth Saulnier<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI love doing renovations,\u201d says Hotelie Lisa Chervinsky \u201989. \u201cI love the visionary aspect of it\u2014to be able to walk into a space and see the potential. And there, I immediately<\/em> saw the potential.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The property that Chervinsky, who\u2019s both a licensed architect and a lecturer<\/a> at the Hotel school, found so promising? La Tourelle<\/a>, the luxury inn and spa on Ithaca\u2019s South Hill.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The hotel is familiar to generations of Cornellians\u2014likely because their parents either stayed there during a campus visit or took them out to eat at one of the fine-dining establishments that existed there in various eras.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And in mid-2024, La Tourelle made local headlines when an investment group comprising a whopping 28 Cornellians formed a partnership to purchase it. It was led by longtime Hotelie pals Joe Lavin \u201975 and Bill Minnock \u201979, MBA \u201983, who both have deep experience in the industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Cornell
ryan young \/ cornell university<\/figcaption>
Hotelies Minnock (left) and Lavin have been friends for decades.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Yet another Hotelie\u2014Chervinsky\u2014was tapped to head up design for a major renovation, whose initial phase wound up in late summer 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But even before the sale, Lavin had a decade-long relationship with La Tourelle as an investor in Firelight Camps<\/a>, a \u201cglamping\u201d operation that leased land behind the inn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe had always said to the owners, \u2018If you ever want to sell, we\u2019d like to take a look,\u2019\u201d says Lavin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In mid-2024, La Tourelle made local headlines when an investment group comprising a whopping 28 Cornellians formed a partnership to purchase it.<\/p><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Adds Minnock: \u201cHaving the opportunity to operate both Firelight Camps and the hotel together\u2014we saw tremendous potential for synergy. So from a strategy standpoint, it was easy. And from a personal one, Joe and I are lifelong friends; we\u2019ve always talked about doing a project together, but never had the opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Located a mile past Ithaca College from downtown, La Tourelle opened in 1986, with a later expansion bringing its capacity to more than 50 guest rooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"An
ryan young \/ cornell university<\/figcaption>
A drone’s-eye view of the property.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

But even before the inn debuted, a standalone building on the property hosted one of the region’s finest eateries: L\u2019Auberge du Cochon Rouge (the \u201cInn of the Red Pig\u201d), a French restaurant in business from the early 1970s to the mid-\u201990s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was succeeded in the space by another upscale restaurant, popular with visiting family and business travelers on an expense account: John Thomas Steakhouse, which was much lamented when it never reopened following its 2020 pandemic closure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

We had always said to the owners, \u2018If you ever want to sell, we\u2019d like to take a look.\u2019<\/p>\nJoe Lavin \u201975<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

The new owners of La Tourelle may eventually lease the building to another restaurateur; in the meantime, it\u2019s used for functions. \u201cWe did fix up the outside,\u201d Lavin notes. \u201cIt\u2019s repainted and re-landscaped, so your sense of entry to the property is improved.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Of the 28 Cornellians who invested in the purchase of La Tourelle\u2014whose name translates as \u201cturret\u201d or \u201clittle tower\u201d\u201426 are Hotelies; the others are an Arts & Sciences alum and an MBA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Once the deal closed, Lavin and Minnock turned to Chervinsky to help them reimagine the spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a family-owned property, and they took great care and great pride,\u201d she says. \u201cBut it had grown tired over the years, and it needed updating.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new owners renovated all the guestrooms in the inn\u2019s original, 1980s-era wing\u2014tearing the bathrooms down to the studs and giving the rooms a retreat-like feel that balances classic and modern design elements. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(The newer wing will be renovated next.)<\/p>\n<\/div>

\"Lisa
provided<\/figcaption>
Chervinsky holds a master’s degree in architecture from the University of Illinois.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two-story lobby got a refresh, including the addition of a large communal table\u2014crafted from a single tree by a local artisan\u2014meant to encourage socializing among the guests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cLa Tourelle had a solid brand and reputation,\u201d Chervinsky observes. \u201cYou have to be careful not to change it too much. You want to update it, but you don\u2019t want to turn off the customers who have been loyal to you all these years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

You have to be careful not to change it too much. You want to update it, but you don\u2019t want to turn off the customers who have been loyal to you all these years.<\/p>\nLisa Chervinsky \u201989<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

An adjacent bar area\u2014which had been the sort of space where guests could grab a free glass of wine, but didn\u2019t have seats for congregating\u2014was transformed into a bona fide hotel bar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Chervinsky notes that it has the potential to attract locals, especially since there are few nightlife options nearby.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"a
ryan young \/ cornell university<\/figcaption>
The reimagined bar …<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"A
provided<\/figcaption>
… with space for dining.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

The bar now includes a 30-seat restaurant that serves not only breakfast for the inn\u2019s guests, but elevated pub-style cuisine at dinner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou get a sense of the quality in the transformation, and that gives you great pride,\u201d Minnock says of the reno.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He adds: \u201cIt\u2019s hard work, but we like to have fun. As we\u2019ve gone through the process, we\u2019ve had more laughs than you could ever imagine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
provided<\/figcaption>
A renovated guest room.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Both past presidents of the Cornell Hotel Society<\/a> (the school\u2019s alumni association) who\u2019ve served as visiting faculty at their alma mater, Lavin and Minnock have been close friends since they worked at Marriott International in the early 1980s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then based in Potomac, MD, they raised their families together, including sharing Christmas Eve festivities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

You get a sense of the quality in the transformation, and that gives you great pride.<\/p>\nBill Minnock \u201979, MBA \u201983<\/strong><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Each have multiple Cornellian relatives: Both of Lavin’s children are Hotelies, while Minnock\u2019s Big Red clan is more than a dozen strong, including dad William Minnock Jr. \u201944, wife Debra Kearl Minnock \u201981, and four of their five kids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Minnock\u2014who lives near Ithaca part of the year\u2014spent decades at Marriott in various leadership roles, while Lavin is a consultant and entrepreneur who owns Vermont\u2019s Norwich Inn, located about a mile from another Ivy: Dartmouth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
provided<\/figcaption>
The lobby has been refreshed … <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n
\"The
provided<\/figcaption>
… including the addition of a communal table to encourage mixing.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have deep roots into the Cornell community, and I\u2019ve always wanted to have a business in this town,\u201d Lavin says, noting that he first tried to develop a hotel in Ithaca\u2014on Inlet Island, next to the Boatyard Grill\u2014two decades ago, but it languished in the municipal planning process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And while the number of hotel rooms in the Ithaca area is now at an all-time high, both Lavin and Minnock point out that La Tourelle has some attributes that set it apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s situated in a bucolic spot, on 15 acres of land adjacent to Upper Buttermilk Falls State Park. It\u2019s got a full-service spa, complete with treatment rooms, relaxation spaces, and locally sourced products and gifts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A
provided<\/figcaption>
One of Firelight’s “glamping” tents.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It offers both conventional hotel rooms and\u2014for glamping fans\u2014luxury furnished tents. And location-wise, it\u2019s three miles to downtown, four to the Cornell campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIthaca has incredible natural beauty, the gorges, the connection with the two universities, such a great history,\u201d Chervinsky observes. \u201cAnd in hospitality, a boutique hotel should always have a strong sense of place.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top: Part of the renovated lobby. (Provided)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Published October 7, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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