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Proposals sought for Bluffs Lodge restoration on Blue Ridge Parkway

88.5 WFDD - Public Radio For The Piedmont | By Neal Charnoff
Published June 2, 2026 at 2:12 PM EDT
The Bluffs Lodge at Doughton Park
Courtesy NPS
A view of Bluffs Lodge at Doughton Park.

Plans are underway to restore the historic Bluffs Lodge on the Blue Ridge Parkway.

Officials with the National Park Service point to the Bluffs at Doughton Park as one of the first developed areas of the parkway.

The restaurant at the site has been restored in recent years and is up and running thanks to a partnership with the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation. Now, officials have announced a leasing opportunity for the 24-room hotel, comprised of two structures that have been vacant since 2010.

Individuals and organizations can submit proposals for the rehabilitation and long-term operation of the property, located near Sparta. This will be the first step in reviving the Bluffs Lodge, which would rejoin nearby facilities, including the Doughton Park Campground and picnic area.

Interested parties can access more information at the Request For Proposals page on the National Park Service website.
Neal Charnoff
Neal Charnoff joined 88.5 WFDD as Morning Edition host in 2014. Raised in the Catskill region of upstate New York, he graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1983. Armed with a liberal arts degree, Neal was fully equipped to be a waiter. So he prolonged his arrested development bouncing around New York and L.A. until discovering that people enjoyed listening to his voice on the radio. After a few years doing overnight shifts at a local rock station, Neal spent most of his career at Vermont Public Radio. He began as host of a nightly jazz program, where he was proud to interview many of his idols, including Dave Brubeck and Sonny Rollins. Neal graduated to the news department, where he was the local host for NPR's All Things Considered for 14 years. In addition to news interviews and features, he originated and produced the Weekly Conversation On The Arts, as well as VPR Backstage, which profiled theater productions around the state. He contributed several stories to NPR, including coverage of a devastating ice storm. Neal now sees the value of that liberal arts degree, and approaches life with the knowledge that all subjects and all art forms are connected to each other. Neal and his wife Judy are enjoying exploring North Carolina and points south. They would both be happy to never experience a Vermont winter again.
See stories by Neal Charnoff