In the coming weeks the Auberge Baie Inn in Campbell’s Bay will change hands from Brian Stanton Enterprises, which has owned the building for 30 years, to Jane Toller, MRC Pontiac warden and local business owner, who intends to re-open the building as a hotel and bar.
The bar’s closure was announced in a Sept. 19 post to its Facebook page. Owner Mike Stanton said that since inheriting it from his father Brian Stanton in 2017, it was hard to keep customers coming through the doors.
“It wasn’t doing what we wanted, it wasn’t making enough money. We’re a trucking company, if it’s costing you money you’ve got to do the right thing,” he said.
The building, built in the 1930s on rue Front, was originally called the Moyle Hotel after the previous building, called the Ronnoco Hotel, burned to the ground on the same site. The building changed hands several times before being bought in 1995 by Brian Stanton, whose passing in 2017 transferred ownership to son Mike.
Toller confirmed on Sept. 24 that she is in the process of purchasing the building, and expects the sale to go through in the coming weeks.
The property was evaluated at $373,700 in its 2025-2026-2027 triennial roll.
She said she intends to turn the place into a hotel and restaurant, similar to what the business would have looked like when it was Moyle’s Hotel.
“My vision is to restore it to a 1930s hotel,” she said, adding that she is envisioning a sports bar for the area that previously housed gambling machines, as well as rooms for rent upstairs.
She said she expects the renovation of the upstairs rooms, which have not been used as hotel rooms for quite some time, to be a considerable investment, but she hopes the hotel can revitalize business along the main street.
“Campbell’s Bay has unfortunately had a lot of businesses close [ . . . ] This could provide a nice anchor to the main street and I hope it will attract more businesses,” she said.
Campbell’s Bay mayor Raymond Pilon said the municipality is happy that someone has purchased the building and will be doing something with it.
“It’s a building that has a lot of history, and seeing somebody taking it over and investing into the building, it’s a really good thing because we didn’t want to see it gone,” he said.
Earlier this summer Toller announced in a press conference she would not be running for warden, where she said she wanted to spend more time with her family and on her businesses. Last week, she reversed course, announcing that she will after all be seeking her third term in this fall’s municipal elections.
When asked about managing a new business in addition to her other businesses which include Fort Coulonge’s Cinema Lyn and Spruceholme Inn, she said it will not conflict with her warden responsibilities if re-elected.
“I don’t see it being any kind of issue because I’m blessed with a lot of energy, and I find in life that we always have energy for the things we love to do.”
