HOWLAND Avalon Inn to refurbish hotel, add a restaurant

HOWLAND -- The Avalon Inn & amp; Resort is about to get a face-lift.
A.I.R. Management Group and Avalon Inn Services have announced joint plans to refurbish the 144-room hotel, The Rig Pub and Eatery and some of the inn's other recreational facilities.
John Kouvas, sole proprietor and creator of OPUS Twenty-One restaurant on the same property, will direct the 12-month renovation project. Work will begin immediately, and all facilities will remain open throughout the construction.
Plans include the addition of an Italian-theme restaurant, a garden atrium entrance, and the upgrade and redesign of guest rooms, banquet and meeting facilities and grounds.
"The vision is to return the Avalon Inn & amp; Resort to its past stature as one of the most pre-eminent resorts in Northeast Ohio," said Kouvas. "Our goal is to continue to build off of the 32-year history and move forward to include the best possible amenities for our guests, as well as the community, to visit and take pride in."
Besides the OPUS Twenty One, Kouvas is sole proprietor of The Grand Pavilion at OPUS Twenty One.
Opened in 1970, the Avalon is on East Market Street in Howland, adjacent to Avalon Lakes Golf Course. The property also includes an indoor-outdoor tennis and racquetball facility, an Olympic-size indoor swimming pool and a fitness center.