School repurposed for tourists

Michael J. Setboun may have already endeared himself forever to the matriarchs of Jackson County — he named his new bed and breakfast after his mother.
A transported Frenchman who moved from Paris to Panama City about two years ago, Setboun has transformed the old Alford schoolhouse into an upscale inn with an international theme. It is located at 2388 Park Ave., just off U.S. Highway 231.
He turned one of the school’s two buildings into a gathering place which he hopes to rent for proms, weddings and other large groups. The other building contains the rooms.
He calls it “La Maison de Lucy.” Over the course of about two years, his mother, Lucy, and his father, Charles, helped him get it ready for business. It is expected to open in about two weeks. An open house/ribbon cutting is set for Dec. 2, from noon to 2 p.m. The public is invited to come and see for themselves the colorful rooms.
The walls of one, the “Morocco” room, are deep aqua, with black and gold accent furniture, while the walls of the “Mexico” room are bright orange. The “Hollywood” room is a study in pink, black and silver, and has pictures of screen legends like Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn. The other rooms are also highly individualized.
Each room’s decor is based on a different place on the globe, appointed with furnishings that reflect the area each represents. The “Kenya” room, for example, has mosquito netting over the bed, and pictures and small sculptures of animals such as giraffes and elephants. There are rooms devoted to China, Greece, Italy, France, India, Ireland and other places.
Each room has a large flat-screen television and a DVD player, a microwave and sink. The deluxe “France” room also has a traditional cookstove.
Two of the rooms are ADA compliant.
Some rooms have jacuzzis, while others have free-standing showers and/or traditional tubs.
All have luxury bedding. Some have two queen beds, or a king and a sofa bed.
A large common dining room and an outdoor dining area complete the bed and breakfast, which sits on a roughly three-acre site.
Setboun said he may add a pool later, and plans more landscaping on the grounds.
Setboun spend $1.8 million to buy the property and do the renovations, which were extensive.
The two school buildings were replumbed, rewired and, where necessary, re-floored. He tried to keep as much of the structure intact as he could. In all but one or two places, for instance, he was able to save the old walls and ceiling.
Setboun has also paid tribute to the old school house in four ways.
He left its exterior just as it was. Except for some cleaning, the outside of the old brick buildings looks the same as they did decades ago, when children walked the halls.
He also found the school’s old flag in his renovation process. The faded reminder of days gone by now hangs from a mantle in a common sitting room.
He also bought an old-fashioned student desk and put it in a common area where visiting children can sit and draw or color.
And, in keeping with the school’s old goal of education, Setboun has placed a coffee-table book in each room, which tells something of the country the room represents.
He also gave a nod to the buildings’ second life as an antiques store, years after the school closed. He bought several pieces of furniture from the people who sold the structure to him, and used the pieces as furnishings in several rooms.
Setboun has hired a couple from Tallahassee to manage the inn, and a local woman to provide maid service. He will be on site often himself.
The inn is an entirely new venture for the 30-year-old. He’s been a pharmacist most of his adult life, but said he knew almost from the start he would never be completely happy in that life because of its predictability. He said he’s looking forward to the new challenge.
His inn will cater to the well-to-do; the rooms will rent for $250 a night. But Setboun said he believes it will be a success, in that it is unique to the area. He said the high-end market doesn’t really have access to these type of accommodations anywhere within a roughly 125-mile radius.
He thinks its proximity to the beaches, about 40 minutes away, will draw visitors with deep pockets who are looking for something a little different.
He said the location in Alford is ideal for his target clientele — it’s a quiet place for rest and relaxation, yet its close enough to the new Panama City airport, U.S. 231 and the interstate to be convenient for travelers.