'People are really excited': Local hotelier Joe Lipton buys Nevada Motel in York Beach, ME

YORK, Maine — A local hotelier will take over ownership of the iconic beachfront Nevada Motel, which had been in the hands of the same family for over 70 years.

Joe Lipton, principal partner and CEO of Crane Hotel Group, which owns the Viewpoint property and others in the York area, bought the Nevada Motel for $1.6 million, Lipton said Friday, Nov. 26. The seller’s original asking price was $2.75 million.

Emblematic of a new era, workers shuffled back and forth near a mountain of mattresses stacked on the motel’s front lawn during a yard sale on Wednesday, Nov. 24 while Lipton combed through seven years' worth of furniture and other miscellaneous items that were collecting dust in the basement. Items were free and donations were optional, Lipton said.

The sale officially kicked off Lipton’s plans to refurbish, renovate and reinvent the motel, which is slated to re-open in 2023, Lipton said. Proceeds from the yard sale, around $2,000 in total, were donated to Yorkwise, a local nonprofit dedicated to promoting drug and alcohol prevention and education, Lipton said.

Lipton said that because he’s lived in York for over 40 years and recognizes the Nevada Motel as a landmark on Long Sands Beach, maintaining the character and feel the original owners laid out is important in his company's vision for the property.

The yard sale was both an opportunity to give back to the community and hear what people’s hopes are for the future of the Nevada, Lipton said.

“There's a lot of eyes on you … people are interested to see what you're going to do … it reminds us that what we're doing is not just for us, but for the community as well,” Lipton said. “It was just so incredibly supportive, people are really excited to see what we're going to do.”

Lipton said he doesn’t want to rush the process of opening the motel.

“We’re going to definitely make sure that we take our time and do the property justice,” Lipton said.

The Nevada was closed last summer by former owner and manager Paul de la Pena, who chose not to open in anticipation of selling and due to staffing shortages.

Previous story: York Beach's iconic Nevada Motel on the market for $2.75M — same family for 70 years

The former owners gave Lipton permission to keep the name, although Lipton said he isn’t sure what the motel will be called. Keeping or potentially toying with the Nevada Motel namesake are both a likely option, he added.

The iconic teal color may or may not stay, Lipton said, adding that it depends on what his business partner, motel designer and spouse, Michelle Lipton, decides. Lipton owns a few restaurants in town and said he’ll likely add one to the Nevada at some point.

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The next step is to assess the structure itself to make sure everything is in good shape, Lipton said. The plan right now is to keep the same structure designed by Henry de la Pena, the motel's original owner. De la Pena named it after the U.S. Navy ship he served on in World War II, the U.S.S. Nevada, according to his obituary, and designed the motel to resemble the flybridge of a battleship, according to his son Paul de la Pena.

“The actual bones, the framing of it and everything is in good shape … Upstairs obviously needs some work, the rooms all need a facelift and the foundation just needs some help,” Lipton said.

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Even if they find it would be cheaper to tear down the structure and build something entirely new, Lipton said the priority is preservation.

“There's going to be a lot of people that will say, ‘Oh, it'll be a lot cheaper to tear everything down and rebuild it,’ which might be the case, but at the same time, that's not our intention,” Lipton said. “Whatever we do, we're gonna keep the look and feel.”

Lipton said his goal is to create a place where locals and visitors alike feel welcome, and he does that by putting comfort, concept design and impact ahead of profit.

“We don’t have the developer mindset, which is ‘how do I maximize the most units? How do I maximize land coverage?’ We spend more time on process … if you don't put money first, money usually then happens because people enjoy the design. They enjoy the space and they feel comfortable,” Lipton said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Local hotelier Joe Lipton buys Nevada Motel in York Beach, Maine