Pipeliner Inn under contract

The Pipeliner Inn is expected to change hands for the first time in 30 years in July if the pending sale proceeds as expected, the motel’s longtime owner A.D. Patel said.

The prospective buyer is Jake Randall of Azle, who recently purchased a farm west of Olney and plans to eventually operate the motel in conjunction with his horse training business. Mr. Randall has been coming to Olney since he was a boy and his late father took him hunting on local leases, he said.

“He had two or three different places in Olney – hunting leases,” he said. “Dad and his buddies would come hunt. Growing up in Southlake, we were involved in what little agriculture was left. We were the minority in this aspect. But as a kid, coming to Olney set my desire for an [agricultural] life, as it was majority of the different lifestyles. My dad and I had some of the best times and best talks here. He passed away, and coming out here reminds me of sit- ting around the campfire with my dad.”

Mr. Randall plans to update the farm he purchased on Schlegel and Self roads and move his horse training operations from Keller and Azle. He said he learned about the Schlegel farm while attending Hamilton St. church of Christ in Olney and meeting the Schlegel family.

“The Schlegel place is very special and the place is packed full of history,” he said. “I am all about restoration of that place -- we are going to fix it up and live in it.”

He became interested in The Pipeliner after noticing that there are few places for newcomers to live in Olney, when a friend was offered a teaching position at Olney Independent School District but could not find a place to live. He would like to refurbish the property and operate it to accommodate short and long-term stays, he said.

“I am not planning on tearing it down,” he said. “This is a new business for me … this was to diversify investments and have a safe place for somebody’s grandma or mother to feel safe. There is a lot of purpose for me being here. This is more than a business transaction.”

If all goes well, the transaction will close next month, he said.