The Paradise Inn's Annex is in the most popular area of Mount Rainier National Park/NPS

Rooms in Mount Rainier National Park will be hard to come by during the next two summers, with safety upgrades at the Paradise Inn closing more than half of all the overnight lodging in the Washington park until 2019.

The park is moving forward with a project at the inn’s Annex and Snow Bridge to reduce the risk of damage from excessive snow loads or collapse as the result of an earthquake. The Annex, built in 1920 with 79 guest rooms, is connected to the original building by the Snow Bridge. The Paradise Inn lobby, dining hall, and main building’s 42 rooms will remain open during construction. In addition, the 25-room National Park Inn in the Longmire area will be available year-round.

The Annex will be open at the beginning of next season but close in July.

“We anticipate the renovation of our Annex guest rooms with private bath will begin August 1, 2017. In preparation for the construction project we will be closing rooms in the Annex effective July 17, 2017, to remove all furniture and fixtures,” Rainier Guest Services, the park’s concessionaire, posted on its website.

The $22 million project was granted final approval this month by Laura Joss, the Park Service’s Pacific West regional director, with a Finding of No Significant Impact to the plan’s environment assessment. It will complete the rehabilitation of the Paradise Inn that began with the main building in 2006. Previous upgrades were made to the Annex in 2008 but weren’t completed due to a lack of funds. Additional improvements will include installing a concrete foundation for the Annex constructed of a replica veneer consisting of the original rubble and addressing noncompliance with building codes.

The Paradise Inn, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1987 and is a contributing component of the Mount Rainier National Historic Landmark District.