PORT BAR – Three branded hotels were sold to a hotel management company with an expanding portfolio in New England.
Witham Family Hotels sold two of its Bar Harbor properties – the Quality Inn and the Best Western – and its Ramada in Ellsworth to Giri Properties last month, said CEO David Witham.
“The hospitality industry is starting to recover from COVID,” he said. “It is an opportunistic time to both buy and sell.”
These three hotels are referred to as “flag” hotels by the industry, complete with recognizable brand names and a specific way of doing things. Giri seems to specialize in such hotels and owns Holiday Inns, Hampton Inns, other Best Westerns, Comfort Inns, Howard Johnsons, and other hotels in four states in the region.
The company is based in Quincy, Massachusetts, and lists more than 40 New England hotels, about half of which are in Maine.
Witham said he was regularly approached about these traits and had always said no beforehand, but the timing now seems to make sense. He also owns six other hotels in Bar Harbor, and outsourcing those flagships would allow him to focus on the independent hotels.
Withams other hotels in town include the Bar Harbor Inn, Bar Harbor Grand Hotel, Villager Motel, Atlantic Oceanside, Acadia Inn, and Bar Harbor Motel.
“It will only allow us to really focus on these and do what we do best,” said Witham.
Witham owned the three properties, which have since been sold, for about 10 years. The package deal with Giri also included a fourth property in Saco, which is to be sold this year.
Witham declined to say how much they had sold, but Giri took out a total of $ 14 million in mortgages for the three locations, according to records from the Hancock County Registry of Deeds.
Giri did not immediately respond to a request for comment this week.
Ethan is the maritime reporter for the Ellsworth American and Mount Desert Islander. It also covers Bar Harbor. If he doesn’t report, you will likely find him on his trail while listening to audiobooks. Submit tips, story ideas, and favorite Hancock County swimming holes to [email protected]
