Major changes keep coming at Cedar Corner

SANDUSKY — If it's not broken, break it to make it better. That's the business philosophy taught to Mike Sortino, the operations director of Sortino Co., by his father. "One of the things about the business we're in is you have to change to keep up with the times, or else you die," Sortino said. With that idea in mind, Sortino is always evolving the Cedar Corner complex at Cleveland Road and Cedar Point Drive. The name is new, but Cedar Corner has been in his family since 1985 and will be familiar to every local person. It houses the Cedar Lanes Bowling Alley, The Thirsty Pony, The Holiday Inn Express and more. Throughout the years, the Sortinos have had added new attractions to the property, including laser tag and off-track betting. "It's the only off-track betting site in Ohio. They tried to do it across the state, but Cedar Downs was the only one that thrived and continues to," Sortino said. Sortino recently appeared on the Register's public affairs show "Between the Lines" to talk about the newest attractions at Cedar Corner. Among the newest editions are a virtual reality arena and ax throwing, which includes a projector able to place interactive games or images on the target. In June, they opened The Stables, a portion of the old Green Tree Inn, which they renovated into a 10-room boutique hotel. "It's all-inclusive with stone fireplaces and hardwood floors," Sortino said. "It's very much in the theme of the Thirsty Pony." But the most significant change to the complex is the expansion of the Holiday Inn Express. Sortino said the demand for rooms at the hotel has been high since it opened three years ago. "It's been very successful," Sortino said. "A lot of it has been spurred by Sports Force and the new indoor arena down the road from us." The expansion raises the building's height to five stories and nearly doubles its number of rooms from 89 to 150. "The ax throwing and the immersive virtual reality arena were all in anticipation of the new room counts and the visitors coming to our neck of the woods," Sortino said. Sortino expects crews will complete the hotel's expansion within a month. Reach reporter Michael Harrington at michaelharrington@sanduskyregister.com, follow the Register at Facebook.com/SanduskyRegister