On Sunday, November 1, the Fortuna River Lodge and Conference Center stops being run by the City of Fortuna's Parks and Recreation Department. The Fortuna Chamber of Commerce takes over that day under a lease the City Council approved on October 5. The Chamber already co-hosts the Al Gray Lighted Parade with the City. Once the handoff happens, the same small organization will be managing the building and helping run the parade during the six weeks when Fortuna's calendar is fullest.
If you have a holiday party booked at the Lodge, or you just want to know whether the craft fair is still on, this is what changed and what the season looks like.
Who to call, as of this week
According to the City's River Lodge page, every existing reservation for November 1 or later has already moved to the Chamber. October events stay with Parks and Recreation, and the City is no longer taking new October bookings.
- Events through October 31: Fortuna Parks and Recreation, 707-725-7620, [email protected]. The office is open Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Events on November 1 or later: Fortuna Chamber of Commerce, 707-725-3959, [email protected]. The office is open Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
- Payments already in the mail: Parks and Recreation can still process them, but send future payments to the Chamber.
The City also asks for patience, describing the transition as one that "involves complex data and logistics" while the Chamber learns the reservation details on file. The October 5 staff report says the handoff covers existing reservations, deposits, cancellations, refunds and customer commitments, so bookings carry over.
Three groups wanted the building
The Lodge's future came up because the city was dealing with budget deficits, as the Times-Standard reported in June. At its June 15 meeting, the council decided to wait and review more proposals. Each of the three groups had a different plan for the building.
Kinetic Hospitality Group Inc., a startup, sent an unsolicited proposal on June 10. It asked for a five-year lease to run the Lodge as a privately managed hospitality and event venue. Its representative told the council she already had 42 event ideas.
Fortuna Union High School District proposed moving its offices into the building, keeping it open for public use, booking out-of-area conferences, and teaching catering and hospitality classes in the kitchen. Superintendent Clint Duey told the council that weddings would no longer be held there under the district's plan and that rental fees might need to go up.
The Chamber's pitch was the one closest to how the Lodge already ran. Chamber President and CEO Felicia Thomsson asked the council to let the Chamber move its office and Visitor Center into the building, keep the River Lodge name, and keep running it as an event center.
On August 17, the council picked the Chamber as its preferred operator on a 4–0 vote and authorized lease negotiations. On October 5, it approved the lease 5–0.
What the Chamber has said it will keep
At the Chamber's monthly luncheon at the Monday Club on September 1, Thomsson described the plan in a few words, as the Times-Standard reported:
"We will continue to operate it as normal as a conference and event venue."
The Chamber's office will move into the Lodge office, and another part of the building will become a visitor center. According to the same report, the Chamber also intends to keep the current Lodge staff. Thomsson said the Chamber would interview them after the lease was signed, "because we would like to keep them employed." Chamber Board President Cody Hurst described a River Lodge advisory committee of board members and Chamber members. He estimated it would be about a six-month commitment to help with the transition.
The lease the council approved sets expectations too. It allows weddings, conferences, meetings, banquets, and community and nonprofit events. It also requires the Chamber to keep the facility operating and make reasonable efforts to keep public, private, nonprofit, community, conference, wedding and visitor-serving events going. If you've booked a wedding reception or nonprofit dinner there, those uses are written into the agreement.
Until recently, this would have been a lot of building for the Chamber to take on. In June, Thomsson told the council the Chamber was looking for local funding partners so it could grow from a staff of one to two full-time employees and one part-time associate.
The holiday calendar the Lodge sits in
November and December test the new arrangement first. The Chamber's annual events page lists the Holiday Craft Fair at the River Lodge Conference Center, and it lists the Chamber as co-host of the parade that closes out the season. Here is the season in date order, with venues where the organizers have posted them.
| Date | Event | Time | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri., Nov. 20 to Sat., Nov. 21 | Jingle and Mingle Holiday Market | 4–9 p.m. Fri.; 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Sat. | Fortuna Veterans Memorial Building, 1426 Main St. |
| Fri., Dec. 4 to Sat., Dec. 5 | Holiday Craft Fair | Opens 4 p.m. Fri.; closes 5 p.m. Sat. | Usually held at the River Lodge |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Stocking Stuffer Boutique | 11:30 a.m.–4 p.m. | Linked to the Gene Lucas Community Center |
| Sat., Dec. 5 | Regalos Navideños | 11:30 a.m.–4 p.m. | Venue not yet posted |
| Wed., Dec. 9 | Fortuna Garden Club Christmas Home & Tea Tour | Noon–7 p.m. | Fortuna Monday Club and local homes |
| Fri., Dec. 11 | Al Gray Lighted Parade | 6 p.m. | Leaves Main Street for Downtown Fortuna |
The season starts at the Veterans Memorial Building. American Legion Auxiliary Walker Bailey Unit 205 hosts Jingle and Mingle the weekend before Thanksgiving, with photos with Santa planned for Saturday.
The Chamber describes the Holiday Craft Fair as a free, two-day fair of handmade crafts. It's the event on this list most closely tied to the Lodge.
Saturday, December 5, is the busiest day of the season. The Stocking Stuffer Boutique and Regalos Navideños both run from 11:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. On its events page, the Chamber describes the Gene Lucas Stocking-Stuffer Boutique as free and family-friendly, with food, cocktails, vendors, free pictures with Santa and cookie decorating. With both events running that afternoon, you could go from the craft fair to the boutique on the same Saturday.
The Fortuna Garden Club sponsors the Christmas Home & Tea Tour on the following Wednesday. It's held at the Fortuna Monday Club and in decorated homes around town that change from year to year.
The parade has a deadline before the craft fair ends
The Al Gray Lighted Parade starts at 6 p.m. on Friday, December 11. The Chamber and the City invite floats, tractors, trucks, bikes and scooters decorated for the holidays. Entries must be mobile and lighted, and no more than 12 feet high or 10 feet wide. They also need to look good from both sides of the street and carry signage showing who they represent. There's a small entry fee, and the parade goes ahead rain or shine.
Entry forms are due by 4 p.m. on Friday, December 4, the same afternoon the Holiday Craft Fair opens. Late entries aren't accepted. You can request an application at the Chamber office or by emailing [email protected]. The Chamber plans to move its office into the River Lodge as part of the takeover, so if you're picking up a form in person, call 707-725-3959 first to check which building it's in.
The Chamber says the route leaves Main Street at 6 p.m. and travels through town to Downtown Fortuna. A street-by-street route for 2026 hasn't been published yet, so check the parade page closer to December 11 before you pick a spot on the curb.
If you're planning a holiday gathering at the River Lodge or wondering how the change might affect events near your home, the agents at Coldwell Banker Cutten Realty follow Fortuna's news closely and are glad to talk it through. For more on the town, see our Fortuna neighborhood page. Contact Us Today.
