Mel Stehelin, the long-time owner of the 98 Hotel who made his mark on Whitehorse in local politics and real estate, died last month at the age of 79.

Born Émile Stehelin in Edmonton, Stehelin and his wife, Eva, moved to Whitehorse on a whim in 1967. Mel Stehelin had had the chance to make a career move to Toronto, but opted for the Yukon instead.

Fresh out of university, the couple bought the former Blue Danube restaurant in downtown Whitehorse and five years later purchased the 98 Hotel, which Stehelin owned until his death.

At one point, he also purchased the old Capital Theatre on Main Street, eventually redeveloping the site into an office/retail building.

In a town of transients, the couple soon became community fixtures.

Stehelin became involved in numerous boards, and chaired the-then Yukon Territory Water Board from 1981 to 1985.

He also spent a term on Whitehorse city council from 2003 
 to 2006.

Stehelin told the Star in 2006 he ran for council to oppose the city’s then-proposed smoking bylaw.

That bylaw passed the year he took office, and, during his term, multiple patrons of the 98 were fined for breaking it – including Stehelin himself.

Finding himself in the minority on the issue, and struggling with the time commitment council required, Stehelin did not seek re-election after his first term.

Stehelin also told the Star in 2006 that he took his council work seriously.

“I’m of the opinion that people don’t elect you not to go to meetings,” he said.

Despite the brevity of his tenure, former longtime councillor Dave Stockdale told the Star recently that Stehelin was great to work with, saying he was a “straight shooter” who “always did his homework.”

Under then-mayor Ernie Bourassa, Stehelin also served with councillors Bev Buckway, who would go on to be mayor, Doug Graham, Yvonne Harris and Dave Austin, who died in 2022.

Stehelin was more than a restaurateur and politician, often going out of his way to quietly help out people with their real estate and mortgage challenges.

Though the 98 Hotel is the long thread that wove through most of his time in Whitehorse, and his brief time in politics gave him his most direct impact on decisions in the community, perhaps his most enduring local legacy was in real estate.

He turned to real estate in a major way in the 1970s, and had a hand in developing dozens of houses in the Riverdale neighbourhood.

In his later years, Stehelin remained active.

Eva Stehelin opened a bed and breakfast in the Hidden Valley subdivision in 2005, which her husband helped run.