Second Norfolk B&B To Open In Mid-January

NORFOLK, VA— Norfolk lawyer Robert Epstein has reportedly spent more than $400,000 converting what was an old boardinghouse on West York Street here into a four-room Bed and Breakfast to be called the Freemason Inn, which is scheduled to open by the middle of this month, according to The Virginian-Pilot. Epstein paid $129,000 for the 105-year-old Victorian row house next door to his law office two years ago. After considering several options, it is said that he settled on converting it into a bed and breakfast after realizing how few operate in Norfolk, the citys only other B&B is the nearby Page House Inn on Fairfax Avenue, stated published reports. Epstein has hired Kevin Cavanaugh, a caterer for Cellar Door who once worked at the Williamsburg Inn, as innkeeper to run the Freemason Inn. In addition to starting this B&B, Epstein has a stake in Commonwealth Enterprises LLC, the partnership that owns the Tazewell Hotel on Granby Street. Epstein was a silent partner until Commonwealth filed for a Chapter 11 bankruptcy last May. SOURCE: The Virginian-Pilot