Views of proposed work on front and side of Hotel Lenhart

The Hotel Lenhart redevelopment project has received another round of incentives from Chautauqua County.

The Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency board approved the Payment-in-Lieu-of-Taxes (PILOT) and tax lease at its meeting on March 28. This incentive package includes real property, sales, and mortgage recording tax abatements and totals $842,987.

Chautauqua Lake Hospitality LLC, who is undertaking the project, previously was approved a $500,000 Al Tech loan in February for the $9.9 million project.

The company is working on purchasing the historic hotel located on Chautauqua Lake in the village of Bemus Point, and completely renovate it to create a year-round destination.

The hotel, originally constructed as a boarding house, has been in operation since 1880.

This major project will include installation of an elevator and other ADA compliant improvements, and the complete renovation of the guest rooms and common areas. The final product will result in a total of 40 guest rooms with all of the modern conveniences, while retaining the historic character of the hotel. An expanded dining area will accommodate guests and visitors, while other amenities will include an event space, spa, and pool.

Views of proposed work on front and side of Hotel Lenhart

The future owners of the Hotel Lenhart have big plans in store for the historic structure.

Bill and Jill Curry presented their renovation proposal to the Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency Board as part of their request for a $500,000 Al Tech loan.

Bill Curry said he’s been a design builder for over 40 years with Jill being in the hospitality industry with Marriot and Hilton for over 25 years.

Curry said the Lenhart is in need of significant upgrades, “Stair towers, sprinkler system, and fire alarms. We also want to provide full access for anyone who comes to our campus. So we will have access for anybody at any level of need. We plan to add a rooftop area, which is the center area, which will have an elevator to it. So anybody who walks in the front door can get to that spot and enjoy the view from the roof.”

Curry said the laundry facility will be turned into a standalone bakery and creamery and that a spa will be added to the building the has employee housing. He said that housing will be moved to a different floor. Other amenities planned include a heated pool and dropping the number of rooms from 57 to 40 so that all rooms have a private bathroom.

Curry said they hope to close on the property by the end of April, with it likely taking nine months to do work.

The cost of the project is $9.8 million. The village of Bemus Point has applied for a $2 million Restore New York grant for the project and another $2 million grant request has been made to the state.

The IDA Board approved the Al Tech loan request as well as a 15-year PILOT. The Curry’s said the project will have 65 temporary jobs during construction, 46 full time employees when the hotel reopens, with 58 total employees by year three.

Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency

CCIDA CEO and Deputy County Executive for Economic Development Mark Geise presented the 2022 Annual Report on the CCIDA to the Board on Tuesday.

He said the IDA Board had approved more than 50 projects in 2022, which included the approval of business loans, development project incentives, and the procurement of grants, “We approved in 2022, either through loans or grants or PILOT incentives, over $500 million. Last year (2021), I believe it was over $140 million. It’s over $500 million this year. We did nine Al-Tech loans. We did eight EDA CARES Act loans. We secured $2.8 million in grant funds.”

Geise said 363 full time jobs were created with 774 being retained in 2022. He said the projects also will create hundreds of temporary construction jobs.

He also discussed the Chautauqua County Partnership for Economic Growth, which was formed in 2019 as an initiative of the CCIDA’s non-profit subsidiary, the Chautauqua Region Economic Development Corporation.

Geise said the organization supports the five pillars of economic development, “We need to be thinking about place making, creating communities that people want to live. We need to be thinking about infrastructure – water lines, sewer lines, electric. We need to be thinking about house – creating housing that meets the needs and demands of talent. We’ve got to have the right housing stock. And workforce development, of course. We talk to businesses every day, ‘I need people.'”

Geise said CCPEG provided over $420,000 in financial assistance and technical assistance to support several dozen partner-led projects and initiatives. In addition, the Partnership was awarded nine grants in 2022, totaling over $1.4 Million, and leveraged an additional $7.5 Million on behalf of its partners.

Geise said his goals for 2023 include acquiring land for expansion of shovel-ready sites; and re-activating several key vacant buildings, including the Furniture Mart Building in Jamestown, Truck-Lite Building in the Town of Ellicott, and the Lenhart Hotel in Bemus Point.

He also wants to develop a marketing and branding strategy for the county to help address population decline and supply businesses with talent.

The CCIDA’s 2022 Annual Report can be found on the CCIDA website: https://ccida.com/about/

EDITOR’S NOTE: As a point of transparency and disclosure to our audience, Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency is a corporate underwriter for WRFA and has provided a financial contribution for the general operations of the station within the past year. Funding we receive for General Operations is not used to fund our coverage of local news in the community. That is only made possible through a Community Service Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. 

Hotel Lenhart

The Hotel Lenhart in Bemus Point and Neckers Company General Store in Clymer have been added to the New York State’s Historic Business Preservation Registry.

State Senator George Borrello and Assemblyman Andy Goodell recently presented the historic business awards to the two businesses.

The Historic Business Registry was established in 2020 and newly launched this spring. It includes businesses that have been in operation for at least 50 years and have contributed to their communities’ history.

The Hotel Lenhart was built in 1881 by Dr. J.J. Lenhart and his wife, Dora Baldwin overlooking Bemus Bay on Chautauqua Lake.

The current hotel, rebuilt following a fire in 1891, has a main floor and three upper sleeping floors, with a total of fifty-three rooms. It also has a 185-foot wrap-around veranda. Up until the end of this summer season, the hotel had been in the same family for four generations.

Neckers Company General Store

Neckers Company General Store was founded by John H. Neckers and Ed Neckers. The store opened at its current location in 1910. Groceries, dry goods, boots, shoes, kerosene and wallpaper were some of the items for sale. The fourth generation of Neckers, Barry and his wife, Kathy, continue to run the store.

Today the business sells groceries, fresh cut meats, made-to-order pizzas and subs, home decor, shoes, boots, apparel, and more.

The honorary program, which provides educational and promotional assistance to help ensure businesses in the state remain viable, is coordinated through the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP).

An interactive storyboard map, which provides information about the location and history of each business, can be found on the agency website at https://parks.ny.gov/historic-preservation/business-registry/default.aspx.

The historic Hotel Lenhart in Bemus Point, NY. (Image from Facebook)

BEMUS POINT – A well known landmark in the village of Bemus Point is closing much of its operation for the remainder of the summer due to COVID-19.

The historic Hotel Lenhart, which has been operating in the lakeside village for 140 years, has made the decision to not accept any more reservations for the summer and to also cancel any that were made after the Fourth of July weekend.

Hotel co-owner and manager Bebe Johnston told WRFA of the difficult decision on Thursday, saying the seasonal hotel has already seen a number of cancellations for this summer and several staff members had also already found other summer jobs, due to the hotel not being able to open in late May because of COVID-19 restrictions. The hotel typically opens each year around Memorial Day weekend and remains open until Labor Day.

Johnston said that in addition to cancellations and staff departures, various state mandates that would require the hotel to take additional steps to sanitize and disinfect rooms and common areas would have been difficult to impossible to keep up with without hiring additional employees beyond the usual staff size.

Johnston said that the Hotel’s kitchen and dining area would also be closed. It had been providing breakfasts for guests on a daily basis during the summer season.

However, not all aspects of Lenhart will be shut down. The hotel’s bar – known as the Lamplighter Room – will remain open, along with the outside porch and lawn, which features the popular “Lenhart Rocker” rocking chairs and Adirondack style chairs.

Johnston said the hotel employs about 50 season workers each summer. She is hopeful it will return to normal operations by the summer of 2021.