Burned. Gutted. Unsalvageable. A “nuisance.” This is the state of the former Junction Inn.
For 54 years, the Junction Inn has been a fixture of Cave Junction. Its tall entry breezeway and ornate sign have been one of the first sights that visitors see when they enter town from the south. Now, the sign is a hollow shell, hotel rooms are boarded up, windows are broken, and trash is strewn about.
Once, this building was a popular 60-room hotel with a bustling restaurant, bar, and lounge. Many locals remember it fondly in the 1970s and ’80s for the food and parties, and as a hub of activity at the eponymous intersection of Cave Junction. Residents remember when, even in the 2000’s, Cave Junction’s only 24-hour diner was a place they could go at all hours for biscuits and gravy.
In later years, former employees say that longstanding issues were not addressed. Plumbing problems were never fixed. The owners’ attention seemed to be mostly in their businesses in California. The hotel earned a reputation as dirty, nicknamed the “Junkie Inn”. It closed in 2019 and was declared a nuisance property by the city of Cave Junction in 2020.
Now, the city is the only bidder for the foreclosure sale of the property at 406 S. Redwood Highway, bidding $575,550, the starting bid, and the same amount as the various liens that the city has accrued against the property over the years. After a 6-month grace period, during which the owners have the option of repaying the amount plus interest, the city will own the property, essentially for free, as it writes off the liens to acquire it.
It was the city’s fourth attempt at a foreclosure auction, as the previous owners of the property, Frank and Erlinda Felizardo, went through bankruptcy and fought the sale each time.
The building, however, is not salvageable, and would need to be torn down. Some parts of the building have burned. Some of the walls, floors, and ceilings in the building contain asbestos, and the cost of disposing of that could be significant. The city estimated that could cost nearly half-a-million dollars.
Nonetheless, Cave Junction mayor Jesse Dugas is hoping that the city can offer a “good deal” and “incentive packages” to a developer and get new lodging built. He plans to host roundtables and workshops on the topic.
“This was top of the list when I got voted in,” Dugas said. “We’re looking forward to bringing everyone to the table and find a creative solution and get some lodging there. We want to make sure it goes to what the community is looking for.”
Lodging has been a community need for the Illinois Valley for sometime. Lindsey Jones, Executive Director of the Illinois Valley Community Development Organization, said that lodging was identified as the community’s fourth overall priority in 2016, and that was while the Holiday Motel in Kerby and the Chateau at the Oregon Caves were still running. Both have since closed.
“Without proper lodging, our community is missing out,” Jones said. “Tourism is an economic driver. Our businesses struggle to survive without it.”
“As of 2025, visitor overnight stays have continued to increase in Josephine County,” said Jones, who holds a seat on the board of Visit Grants Pass.
The Junction Inn was built in the spring of 1972 by Cross and Kaufmann, at a “frenzied pace,” according to a photo caption from the Illinois Valley News archives. Photos from March through June show the construction, including the raising of the breezeway and the Junction Inn’s iconic sign.
On July 27, 1972, the Junction Inn took out a full page advertisement in the I.V. News announcing the grand opening. The event included a visit from Miss Rogue Valley a $3.95 prime rib special, and free trips to the Oregon Caves for Junction Inn guests. The “intimate lighting and comfortable furnishings” of the restaurant’s bar were also advertised.
The Boswell Room , the events space, was named after Boswell Mine, a gold mine along Sucker Creek.
In that same issue, numerous local businesses took out simple text ads welcoming the Junction Inn to town.
During the 1980s, the Inn was owned by L. C. Bliss & Sons Livestock Company. In 1982 , the property was subdivided into two plots, the other of which Grocery Outlet now sits on. In 1985, the Boswell Room was remodeled by Bolen Construction. In 1986, the property was sold to the Felizardos.
After the change in ownership, the restaurant’s kitchen became a “whirlwind,” according to longtime Valley resident Charlie Mickey. The new owners couldn’t get a liquor license to operate the bar, he said, and the restaurant struggled to retain staff. Mickey took over the restaurant operations in that first year.
Mickey, IVHS Class of ’64, also used to hold IVHS alumni events at the Junction Inn. He said that hundreds of alumni would come stay in the Valley every year, many at the Inn. On the Saturday night of reunion weekend, all six of the classes involved in that year’s events would come together for a dance at the Inn’s banquet hall. It was a big party.
The tradition continued until the early ’90s, Mickey said. Now, the lack of lodging in Cave Junction hinders reunion activities.
“90% of them end up staying in Grants Pass hotels,” Mickey said.
In their own words: Locals share memories of the Junction Inn
| Lori Recio Cross and Kaufman built it. It was managed by Nicki Cramer in 1976. Rosa Frye was the hostess, cashier along with Fran Pollereno. They had a huge banquet room that had a Prime Rib buffet on Friday nights. The banquet room also accommodated private parties, wedding receptions, etc. The food was American traditional, like oldtime menus, but had some specials that people came in for, like the chicken livers, or the homemade potato salad and fresh baked pies. The New York steak sandwich was a hit. The soups were all made in house in the prep kitchen. I worked as a waitress at 16 years old for 2 years. It was a welcome place for local loggers, businessmen, miners, tow truck drivers, etc., to have early-morning breakfast or a family night out. Our sheriffs and Cave Junction police ate there several times a week along with our lone Oregon State Police officer. The restaurant was packed every day at meal times. With the Oregon Caves as a West Coast destination and the route to the coast the motel saw plenty of business, as did the restaurant. It had a pool which in those days was rare for our area. Lake Selmac put on a logging show that attracted visitors. Holidays at Selmac the campgrounds were packed so the Inn had those non campers accommodations. The Labor Day festival was bigger then. too. July 4th weekend was Reunion and the JI served as homebase for out-of-towners. It was once a lively and lovely place to stay. |
| Patty Bradbury I started working there when I was 12. It was a place where my mom, sister, aunts, cousins, and friends all worked, so it was easy for me to join them. Over the years I did just about every job they had, except bartender, and over the years I worked every shift they had. It was definitely the place to go eat during the ‘70s and ‘80s. The weekends would be so busy, there would be lines of people waiting out both the entry doors. We did many different buffets, and would feed busloads of people, travelers. During some of the local fires we would work with the Forest Service and supplied the firefighter crews with breakfasts, filled their coffee thermoses, sent them out with sack lunches (about 300 of them daily). then feed them dinner. It was definitely an after-party, after-drive-in, and bar-closing hangout for the locals. Oh, the memories… |
| Jim Nolan I can’t remember the exact year, perhaps 1966 or 1967, the last year the area was occupied by a mobile home park. When the land was purchased to make way to build the Junction Inn, they removed the mobile homes and then logged the 120-foot-tall trees on the property. I got a job chopping firewood from the trees that were left over after the marketable timber was hauled off to the mills to make lumber or plywood. There was just me and a 70 or 80-year-old woodcutter. Between us, we split over 100 cords of wood. I was just a teenager back then. |
| Amberlynn Decelles Every year when we did Christmas caroling with Terry Jon Lund, we would start at the nursery. We would always end up at Junction Inn and get something to eat and a cup of cocoa. They never skipped on the whipped cream. And of course, the tree lighting. |
| Ashly Wissler The most excitement came when mom had enough change to spare for the bed to become a space ship ride. The quilt was old but sturdy, and with one coin it became an enthusiastic trip to outer space. I would search the pavement some days, looking for another opportunity to go on the rocket ship. I was used to the room, it had been a month or two since we called it ours. The diner became full of familiar faces, calling my shy self by name. The smell of bacon, syrup and the steam from the possibly lip-stained mug of coffee filled my everything as we entered the cafe. So many choices to choose from, all becoming so recognizable to me, and yet I chose a small cardboard box of cereal. The act of pouring milk into a box would never cease to interest me. Although this place had its wild and questionable stories, it also felt like home for a temporary time. Hospitality, comfort, and a stretch of stability are the roots of what the Junction Inn provided. |
| Teri Binnell I remember, one night, a man came flying out of the bar and into the hall, hit the cigarette machine and moved it about 5 feet with his body. The man that threw him out of the door: none other than Ruben B. I’m keeping his last name out, but if you’re from the ’70-80s, you will know! Nobody messed with him, although he was very sweet! Best times ever! |
