By Meghan Muldoon

WESTPORT — When Charles Mallory looks at the newly renovated Inn at Longshore, he sees more than a hotel refreshed for a new era. He sees a Westport landmark restored to a standard its setting and history deserve and an asset the town can take pride in for years to come.

“I’m very, very pleased with the way it turned out,” said Mallory, founder and CEO of Delamar Collections, which operates the town-owned Inn at Longshore under a 30-year lease.

The $8 million renovation of the facility, which opened to guests and events in August, proved far more extensive than originally planned.

“Everything has been replaced,” Mallory said. “It was a much, much bigger job than we had anticipated and the building was really in horrific shape. But now it’s here for a long time to come and I think the town and the citizens of Westport are going to reap the benefit of that.”

Mallory was recently named the inaugural Hotelier of the Year by the Connecticut Restaurant and Hospitality Association.

According to Mallory, the problems became apparent as the team opened the building’s walls.

“The minute you got behind it, there was a problem,” he said. “It was just an ongoing drama of finding new problems and having to repair them.”

The work went well beyond cosmetic improvements. Plumbing, electrical systems, HVAC, windows, shingles, siding and insulation were replaced, while long-standing issues, including a leaking roof, were addressed. 

The building was largely gutted with “75, 80, 90 percent” of it replaced, according to Innkeeper Michael Ryan.

“The bones are still here but there’s really no (preexisting) drywall left. There’s no lighting left,” he said.

Significant structural changes included relocating the front entrance, opening the building toward the waterfront, adding a portico and installing an elevator. A new, larger kitchen was also built to serve both La Plage, the on-site waterfront restaurant, and the inn’s wedding and banquet events. 

The renovation also opened up views of the water that had previously been blocked. Mallory said more than half of the inn’s rooms now have water views, compared with only a handful before the renovation.

With the building once cut off from the waterfront, brides previously had to hold ceremonies in front of La Plage. The redesigned grounds and entrance now allow brides to walk directly from the ballroom down the aisle for their waterfront ceremonies.

The property’s history was central to the project. Purchased by millionaire Frederick Lewis in 1910, the estate has served over the decades as a private residence, country club, inn and community gathering place. F. Scott Fitzgerald and his wife stayed next door to the 175-acre Lewis estate for several months and was known to have spent time there, contributing to the property’s enduring Gatsby-era mystique.

Rather than erase that history, Designer Ryann Hackett of Ryann Swan Design said the goal was to build upon it.

“This is a property that the town of Westport feels ownership over,” she said. “I feel like everyone feels such a connection to this place. We approached it from a perspective of we don’t want to create a new space. It’s a book that’s been written and we just want to open a new chapter and still pay tribute to what it was.”

Hackett said her firm conducted extensive research into both the building’s and Connecticut’s history while creating the interiors. The design incorporates custom furnishings, textiles and wallpaper inspired by the property’s 1920s-era history without turning the inn into a period-themed hotel.

Local art further connects the inn to its surroundings. Works by Westport artists, including John Bygott and Miggs Burroughs, are displayed throughout the property. Burroughs’ lenticular pieces depicting Westport scenes are featured in the lobby, including one showing the entrance to Longshore.

For Delamar, the Inn at Longshore completes a broader local hospitality strategy. The company renovated Delamar Southport about 15 years ago and later took over the Westport Inn, transforming it into Delamar Westport.

“The idea was to have all three working together and to have a three-legged stool, each with different restaurants, different sizes, different feels that all could work together,” Mallory said. “I think it just offered us the ability to attract a wider group of customers and give them a great experience, three different experiences. That was the goal.”

Although the doors are open, Mallory said the project is not entirely finished. Artwork, landscaping and other finishing touches will continue.

Still, he sees the completed renovation as something larger than a new hotel.

“If you’re thinking about moving to Westport from New York City, for example, what an incredible resource to have this park and all the facilities within the park and then to have a world class place where you can spend the night and have dinner and weddings,” Mallory said. “It’s an incredible asset.”

“I can’t think of any municipal world class lodging establishment like this in any town,” he added.

Meghan Muldoon

^{_{Meghan Muldoon is a freelance journalist based in Darien, Connecticut. As a television and print journalist, Muldoon has covered state government and politics in Virginia and Connecticut.}}