Shaws Fish and Lobster Wharf, a seasonal restaurant and commercial fishing dock, in New Harbor after a light snow on Tuesday, Dec. 10. The restaurant and its associated properties went up for sale on Friday, Dec. 6 and is listed at $3,375,000. (Johnathan Riley photo)
Shaw’s Fish and Lobster Wharf in New Harbor is on the market.
William “Bill” Knight and Lloyd Mendelson, owners of the popular restaurant and commercial fishing dock at 129 Route 32, listed the business and its properties for sale with Sotheby’s International Realty on Friday, Dec. 6.
“When it opens this spring I’ll be 80, so … Lloyd and I decided it was time to maybe retire,” he said.
Knight and his business partner at the time, Tom Abercrombie, bought the business and the property in May 1990 from Howard and Nancy Shaw, who had owned it since 1988. Property transfer records indicated Abercrombie transferred his ownership of the Shaw’s Wharf properties to Mendelson and Knight in April 1999.
Over the last 34 years of ownership, Knight said he has kept things down at the restaurant pretty similar to how they were when he bought the place.
“Kept it going just the way it was when we bought it, made some improvements along the way,” Knight said.
The seasonal, seafood restaurant is also home to live music during the summer months and weekly cornhole tournaments.
“We try to serve the best food we can and keep everything as fresh as possible, our customers been happy and keep coming back,” Knight said.
Over the years, Knight has acquired nearby properties. In addition to the restaurant and wharf, the sale includes a lot for employee parking across the street at 132 Route 32, a residential home east of the wharf at 131 Route 32, and the parking lot at 81 Route 32, where there are two single-wide mobile homes.
Each of the properties, six lots in total, and the structures upon them are included in the $3,375,000 listing price, according to Sotheby’s Real Estate Associate Debi Fox.
“They want to sell it all together. It’s much easier that way,” she said.
According to Lincoln County registry of deeds, Knight purchased the house at 131 Route 32, the property to the east of the restaurant’s parking lot in 2010. The deed to the parking lot located at 132 Route 32, indicates that it was purchased in 1999.
The property at 81 Route 32, purchased in June 1994, is leased as parking to Hardy Boat Cruises, a daily seasonal ferry to Monhegan Island that loads at Shaw’s Wharf. The commercial vessel also provides tours of local wildlife, including of Eastern Egg Rock, the southern-most colony of the Atlantic puffin.
Chenmark, a Portland based holding company, owns Hardy Boat Cruises and has a lease agreement with Knight and Mendelson.
Knight said he and Mendelson don’t expect the property to sell immediately but they’ll keep operations running normally until then.
“We don’t expect it to sell right way … we’ll keep it running as we always have,” he said.
