Renovated Whistle Stop is now Thompson Falls Laundry

When you think of a downtown renewal project, a laundromat might not be the first idea that comes to mind. But the Whistle Stop Laundromat is helping bring a fresh new feel to Thompson Falls’ Main Street.?

New owners Charlie and Christine Munday see the Thompson Falls Laundry, in the building locals will always think of as “The Whistle Stop,” as a way to contribute “life and hope and love” for their new home town. Christiine grew up in Idaho, and husband Charlie, a commercial electrician by trade, loves to hunt and enjoy the land. The call to return to the small town beauty of the northwest after 18 years in southern California was too much to deny any longer.?

In the Whistle Stop, the Mundays saw a business opportunity that could contribute to their new community. The building is on the National Historic Register (the old Weber’s Store) and though it needed some extensive remodeling, the structure itself was surprisingly sound. With that as a starting point, Charlie’s electrical expertise, and lot of love and hard work on both his and Christine’s part, the business is taking on a bright new look and even a fresh clean smell since they bought it in November.

As old walls get torn into for new wiring, some interesting discoveries have been made. For instance, inside the walls behind the dryers, buried in lint, they found a laundry detergent vending machine, something that has been missing from the business for a long time. They cleaned it up, hung it, filled it, and pressed it back into service.?

THE MUNDAYS work hard on the building when they are in town, and have more ideas for when they are able to live here full time. While they tear into walls, repair machines, and put in new wiring, paint, snack and pop machines, they are also enjoying hearing from their customer base.?

“We’re really listening to what people in the community say they want,” says Christine. And what many of them want, it turns out, is extra large washing machines. “Many people come to the laundromat to wash horse blankets and comforters and things their own machines can’t handle,” Christine has found. New, large machines are on their way, including one “quadruple-sized” beast.?

It’s not as easy as just buying new machines, though. Repair and maintenance people only come through on their route periodically. This can lead to frustrated customers when they face “out of order” signs. So Charlie is gaining the new skill set of washing machine repair on top of everything else. ?

Thompson Falls Laundry is open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. — even throughout the remodeling. Christine noted that at night people might think it is too dark to be open, but step inside and the bright, friendly warmth of new motion-activated lights (an energy saver) welcome you. The apartments upstairs are getting a makeover, too, starting with new electrical panels and wiring and paint, and eventually new heaters and new windows.

“Having a laundromat in a community is essential,” says Christine. “We want to make sure we’re providing a pleasant place to be. We’re super excited about becoming part of the community, and making improvements to benefit the people here.”