Thee Laundry in Caliente. Owner/operator Dorothy Synsteby says it provides a needed service to people of that part of the county.
Dorothy Synsteby is the owner/operator of Thee Laundry Laundromat in Caliente. She bought the business and machines from Dr. Adam Katschke about five years ago and is very grateful to the Lincoln County Regional Development Authority for helping give her a head start.
She said LCRDA provided her with about $30,000 “to put in new flooring, redo the bathrooms, etc.” LCRDA helped her put in “everything you see in front and all the equipment.”
Katschke owned the Laundromat that was located next to Meadow Valley Pharmacy, but closed it after a short time, and Dorothy bought the washers and dryers, then moved to location to where it is on Clover Street.
“I had helped him (Katschke) before,” she said. “I did the wash/dry/folds and the stuff that people would leave in the Laundromat for somebody else to do.”
Years ago, another Laundromat was operated in the same location where the present one is now, “but it was just closed as the people gave up on it,” she said.
While it might not be a big money maker, Synsteby said, “It’s paying for itself. I never meant it to pay me a lot of money.”
She said she used to work at the Caliente Youth Center and decided she wanted to retire and “do something for myself.” She took a lease on the building from owner Mark Holt. “I wanted to do a service for the people in our county. The townspeople like it, say it’s very, very clean. Nice to have a laundromat that we never had for years.”
Synsteby used to own a laundromat in Minnesota in the 1970s, and still does pressing at the shop upon request. “I do the uniforms for the Sheriff’s deputies.”
Hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. seven days a week. “I can stay open longer when necessary, if we have a work crew in from the power company or the railroad. They work long hours and may not be able to come in during our regular hours,” she said.
The coin-operated industrial size machines are electric powered washers and propane dryers.
“It’s a small operation,” she said, “but a needed service to the whole county. I have customers from Pioche and Panaca, too, and even travelers at the state parks. It’s a good service.”
