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Hospitality Comes Naturally for Couple: Son of Tussey Developers, Wife Plan Cabins on Nearby Land

Posted on: Sunday, 25 December 2005, 15:00 CST

By Jennifer Thomas, The Centre Daily Times, State College, Pa., The Centre Daily Times, State College, Pa.

Dec. 25--BOALSBURG -- Hospitality has long been a career undertaken by members of Randy Aikens' family. After all, his parents developed and, for more than 20 years, operated Tussey Mountain Ski Resort.

But it was only recently that Randy Aikens and his wife, Mindy, became interested in making their mark in the county's hospitality scene.

The couple are in the process of transforming a 9-acre parcel into Aikens Country Cabins and Cast Iron Grill at Bear Meadows. The site, located next to Tussey Mountain Ski Resort, will offer five luxury cabins surrounded by pavilions and grill areas.

"We just feel like you can do a lot with it with just a few buildings," Mindy Aikens said.

It should be open in late summer, the couple said.

The cabins will each have two bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom and a screened-in front porch. A concession and vending area and office facility also will be on the site, and the couple are already considering future additions.

"We'd like to grow into it," Randy Aikens. "Bring in a little grocery store for camping and fishing supplies."

They feel the cabin approach is the right fit for the area. The land is surrounded by state parks and forest land.

"Right now, we wanted to get into the hospitality end of it. Some type of rustic, luxury accommodations," Randy Aikens said. "There's so many different functions."

It was important to the couple to keep the mountain feel, he said, but at the same time, create a peaceful, pretty and relaxing place -- a mix of the country with the comforts of home.

The property has been in the family for generations. The Aikenses developed the Tussey Mountain Ski Resort in the 1960s. The family sold the resort in 1981, but kept the cabin land and a small tract next to the slopes, Randy Aikens said.

It took five years of planning to get to this point. In that time, a number of possibilities were considered for the land, including indoor basketball courts. A miniature golf course was envisioned, until the $250,000 price tag and seasonal-use restrictions convinced them to consider other options.

"Then we looked at it, and it just didn't seem to go with the area," Randy Aikens said.

The idea of branching into hospitality was appealing to both of them. Randy Aikens, who operates a small backhoe and landscaping service, has a love of cooking, his wife said. And Mindy Aikens, who works in a veterinary hospital, loves decorating and hosting events.

"We are just kind of floating in what we do right now," Mindy Aikens said. "It's not our chosen professions."

The couple want to create something of a bed-and-breakfast atmosphere, where they greet and attend to their guests with what they call "friendly hospitality."

"You can share that with everybody," Mindy Aikens said. "Just a place for people to gather and spend time and have fun. ... With what we have to offer, it has me more and more excited every day."

They plan to continually update the facility by making the antiques and artwork used to decorate available for purchase.

They won't be just renting cabins. The couple also want to host a variety of events, including wedding receptions, anniversary parties and family reunions. If there's still availability, there's always cookoffs and fundraisers, Mindy Aikens said.

"I want to have some function going on as often as I can," she said.

Jennifer Thomas can be reached at 231-4638.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Centre Daily Times, State College, Pa.

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Source: Centre Daily Times (State College, Pa.)

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