Lakefront landmark gone in a flash

Newport Shores restaurant, a landmark on Port Washington’s lakefront, is no more.

A crew razed the building in short order Tuesday morning, making way for Ansay Development to construct its Newport Shores development, which will include 29 condominiums, office space, a store, restaurant and a rooftop pub.

“I can’t believe how fast it went. It’s all gone already,” John Weinrich, who owned and operated Newport Shores for 31 years before closing the restaurant, said at 11:15 a.m. Tuesday — less than three hours after the crew began demolishing the structure. 

“I think it took longer to cut down the trees there than to take down the building.”

The work attracted a crowd to the lakefront, said Weinrich, who is a partner in Ansay’s Newport Shores development.

Many of those who gathered were regulars at the eatery who wanted to say one final goodbye, he said.  

“It’s non-stop people,” Weinrich said. “I’m waving to all the old customers.”

Newport Shores has been a fixture on the lakefront for decades. Weinrich and his  uncle Richard Lehn bought the former Lakeview Lounge in 1989.

The restaurant drew a crowd not just for the expansive views of Lake Michigan and the shoreline showcased by large windows in the dining room but also for its friendly atmosphere and affordable meals — especially Friday fish fries.

In recent years, Weinrich created a patio and used a former fishing tug, the Mary Jean, as a bar where the restaurant hosted summer concerts. 

But, Weinrich said, his plan was always to sell the restaurant for development. 

Weinrich said that crews will begin digging the foundation as soon as possible, adding that they will pour the concrete by the end of the year and by April the frame of the new building is expected to be up.

Ansay officials have said it will take about a year to construct the new, multi-million-dollar structure.

The Newport Shores project, unveiled in 2018, would replace the current restaurant on Port Washington’s waterfront with a modern L-shaped building with a glassy design.

The first floor will contain a 3,500-square-foot restaurant with a wrap-around deck, three tenant spaces and parking for residents and workers.

The second and third floors will have 11 condominiums each, while the fourth floor will have seven residential units as well as a rooftop pub with a deck.

The project will encompass not only the Newport Shores building and an adjoining house that was also razed Tuesday, but also city-owned land that housed the fish cleaning station and Kiwanis pavilion — land the company acquired through a land swap with the city.

Sixteen of the condominiums have been spoken for, Ansay officials said recently.