ROCKPORT – It was a much anticipated opening and the day finally arrived. The Rockport Harbor Hotel at 20 Central Street in Rockport Village opened its doors to the public Wednesday, December 27. Stuart and Marianne Smith purchased the Shepherd Block and its two adjacent lots in 2016.

The Smith family has put their heart and soul into the design, construction and decorating of Rockport’s newest member of their hotel business, the Bayview Collection, which includes the Lord Camden Inn, Grand Harbor Inn and 16 Bayview Hotel.

The hotel will feature 20 studios and suites. Two restaurants and bars open to the public and offering expansive views of Rockport Harbor.

Stuart Smith said it has been a long road, but a lot of fun. He said there has been much support.

“The real credit goes to my wife Marianne and my son Tyler who have done all the design work on the entire interior,” he said. “All the details you see have come from them collaborating on great ideas.”

Smith said there is still a lot of work to be done. The goal, he said, is to make it for the community; the Oak Room, which is the lobby bar and restaurant, is open for to public.

“The upstairs bar and restaurant will probably open up in April,” he said. “And that will all be open to the general public. We want it to be inviting, very local and a place where people can hang out.”

Tyler Smith said there are two types of rooms in the hotel.

“On the street side I have two rooms per floor,” he said. “And on the water side I have four rooms taking up the same space.”

He said the street side rooms are obviously more spacious.

“They have a queen bed with a lock-off bedroom, a couch that pulls out into a queen bed and a kitchenette,” he said. “The kitchenette is for people having longer stays. It will have a microwave and a small dining table.”

Tyler said people will have leftovers and they will be doing room service once the kitchens are operational.

He is particularly proud of the mosaic in the floor as you walk in the door.

“My mom and I did this mosaic and it has about 40,000 pieces in it,” he said. “It was a lot of fun and there is a secret hidden heart piece in there. Most of the tiles are square pieces, but every once in a while we did some random extra pieces.”

Marianne Smith said if one looks long enough, the heart can be spotted.

Tyler said many bricks, all from Maine, went into the construction of the hotel.

“They come from the Royal River banks by Augusta,” he said. “They dig clay out of the banks and make bricks and they are actually the same bricks that were used in the library. The granite is from Maine, as well.”  

Maine Coast Construction did all the steel work; J. Bonarrigo Construction the concrete foundation; Penobscot Electric, the primary electrical work; and Bonin Masonry did much of the stone work.

To see pictures of the different construction phases of the hotel go here on the hotel’s website for a construction photo gallery.

Sarah McLean, general manager of the Rockport Harbor Hotel, said the first guests are scheduled for Friday, December 29.

McLean said the top floor will host a restaurant, Atrium.

“It is a 40 to 50 seat restaurant,” she said. “It will be finer dining — not fine dining because we want everyone to feel welcome coming in.”

She said the hotel expects it to open in late March or early April.

“We have a glass wall onto the balcony that completely retracts,” she said. “We also have a glass ceiling that also retracts, so on nice days it will feel like you’re sitting in an outside café. It will be absolutely beautiful.”

She said they will serve breakfast and dinner downstairs in the Oak Room and lunch and dinner upstairs in the Atrium.

McLean said the Oak Room also has a retractable glass wall to the balcony that can be opened on nice days. For parking, she said there is a generous area out back for guests that can accommodate 40 to 50 people.

“Out front is still two-hour parking,” she said. “So whether you’re dining here, 18 Central, or Nina June, that traffic will be in constant motion.”

“On the ground floor we have two rooms available that are compliant with the American Disabilities Act,” she said. “One is set up for wheelchairs and the other is specifically set up for hearing impaired. It is a studio room and not a suite, meaning one room with two queen-size beds.”

The Rockport Harbor Hotel was built and appointed with the rich history of Rockport in mind.