CASTINE, Maine — The Pentagoet Inn & Pub has been selected by the National Trust for Historic Preservation and American Express to receive a "Backing Historic Small Restaurants" grant to help restore some of its Victorian charms.
The establishment is one of 25 selected this year and is Maine's first business to receive this grant since the program started three years ago.
"Our biggest intention of having this space is to truly make people feel like they're in a dream as soon as they walk through our doors," co-owner George Trinovitch, said.
Owners Trinovitch and Matt Powell have owned the inn for almost a year and have already returned some of the building back to its original state.
"The Pentagoet for a long time has been the heart of Castine. It's not just a place of lodging, a place of business. We've noticed in the year of being here, it's kind of like the Castine social club," Powell said. "This $40,000 will help us take the next steps to do something really incredible, not just for our building and our business, but for the community."
The grant will help restore the building's exterior and help ease some general operational costs. The pair hopes to restore an original outdoor stairway and add a patio area.
"The energy and creativity that Matt and George have brought symbolize, kind of, the rebirth, the revitalization of the town in so many ways. There's new businesses moving in, and people bringing new ideas," Justin Cooper, a longtime customer, said.
The inn is what brought Trinovitch and Powell from New York last July as they had sights on running a bed and breakfast. In January, the pair began restoring and redesigning the 1894 inn.
They restored the lobby to its original state, uncovering original woodwork. They also redesigned rooms to create a more maritime theme.
"Once you walk in those doors, you feel like you've stepped back in time," Powell said.
Kate Noel regularly goes to the Castine "mainstay" with her family and said it's exciting to see the inn return to its original glory.
"There's just a feeling that you get when you come up the stairs and through the screen door that it's going to be a happy occasion, and you're always going to see a new face and some familiar faces," Kate Noel said.
