Rehoboth’s Bellmoor Inn sold to NYC investment firm

The Bellmoor Inn and Spa in Rehoboth Beach has been sold to EOS Investors, LLC a privately held real estate investment firm based out of New York City.

In a statement Feb. 27, Beacon Hospitality’s Chad Moore said EOS presented them with a great offer and took possession of the hotel Feb. 26.

“It has been our family’s privilege to bring The Bellmoor Inn to Rehoboth, and our success could not have been attained without our dedicated and professional staff,” said Moore.

Moore’s parents, Bob and Dee, purchased the Christian Street property in 1999. At the time it was known as the Dinner Bell Inn, which had been in operation since Ruth Emmert opened it in 1937. The Moores officially opened The Bellmoor Inn and Spa in 2003, and it underwent a major renovation in 2018.

In 2005, the inn was featured in a Vanity Fair article about a 2004 trial in Georgetown that pitted Disney shareholders against the company’s board of directors. Famed writer Dominick Dunne described how former Walt Disney Co. CEO Michael Eisner, Walt’s older brother Roy Disney and representatives from 12 law firms stayed at the Bellmoor during the trial. The high-profile case took place in Georgetown because Court of Chancery Chancellor William B. Chandler III wanted to use a newly constructed chancery courthouse on The Circle.

Founded in 2017, EOS owns high-end hotels, resorts and marinas in Maine, Florida, Washington, D.C., and South Carolina.

EOS could not be reached for comment, but its website says the company “manages capital on behalf of its investors utilizing a highly selective investment approach focused on high-quality, differentiated assets with attractive risk-adjusted returns.”

Moore said he and his family are confident EOS will continue to operate The Bellmoor Inn with the same attention to detail and quality customer service his family has provided.

It’s not clear what EOS has in store for the inn, but at the very least, it appears the new owners plan to serve alcohol. According to a legal notice published Feb. 25 and Feb. 28 in the Cape Gazette, an application was filed Feb. 21 to the state’s Alcoholic Beverage Control Commissioner for a hotel liquor license, a Sunday service liquor license and a variance to permit the use of external speakers and amplifiers on an external patio for 6 Christian St.

The sale of this property does not mean the Moores are leaving Rehoboth. Moore said his parents still own the Oceanus Motel, and he and his wife Elyse own The Admiral on Baltimore and Microtel Inn & Suites in Georgetown, and they are developing another Microtel Inn & Suites in Milford.