PONCA — Mike Mills, owner of the Riverwind Lodge in Ponca, said he plans to rebuild the structure to be better than it was before a fire destroyed it Sunday.
The 3,200-square-foot logcabin lodge caught fire early Sunday afternoon and burned to the ground, Mills said.
Mills said he was the first person on the scene. He tried to use a garden hose to douse the flames, but it was no use.
“A garden hose was just spitting on it,” he said. “Fire was already coming out from the eaves of the roof.”
The lodge had been leased for a wedding last weekend, and three more weddings were scheduled there over the next two months, he said. He doesn’t believe any of the occupants caused the fire.
Mills said he had insurance on the building, and he hopes to reconstruct it within about five months. The insurance company is investigating the cause.
A new building on the site could cost $500,000, he said.
“We may not go back in the exact same footprint,” he said. “We will build it back better than it was.”
Mills said the Riverwind Lodge, which overlooked Boxley Valley, was constructed in 2003. The building had five bedrooms and could sleep 24 people, said Mills, who also owns Buffalo Outdoor Center.
Northwest Arkansas, Pages 9 on 09/27/2012