FLWright in Mason City again

The FLWright house that  reopened recently in Mason City is not to be confused with the FLWright hotel – the last of the six hotels he designed that remains – that I gather is opening in about a year.  The restoration of the hotel – to be called the Historic Park Inn Hotel – has been in the works for 13 years, with three different owners, the most recent being a citizens group that bought the poor old place on ebay for $1. The hotel first opened in 1910. Wright reportedly visited the hotel construction site (and next to it a bank he designed) until a notorious escapade ended his visits – Wright took off for Europe with the wife of one of his clients. (See the novel “Loving Frank” for more details on that.)