of Fort Bend couple purchases historic hotel on Gulf coast

by BRANDON NORVELL | bnorvell@fbherald.com

Coated with salt air under a summer sun lies a small coastal town called Port Lavaca. Engulfed with history, lies the remains of what used to be the Navidad Hotel. A building with bright blue walls that resembles the marina that it looks out upon.

One Rosenberg couple decided to grab their tool belts and restore what was formerly a hotel. Lesa and Jeff Junek, residents of the Richmond/Rosenberg area, have had their hands full after purchasing the property.

Port Lavaca, known for saltwater fishing, was founded in 1840 due to the aftermath of the Linville raid. Later on, the town became known for its export of shrimp.

The property built in 1908 has since served as a hotel and an apartment complex. The property is a current work in progress, within its online listing the former hotel is stated to need roofing repairs. The price of the property was listed at $165,000 when the Junek family decided to make their purchase.

“Most people buy a sports car, we bought a hotel,” said Lesa. “I joke about it being a midlife crisis, but we are in our 50s if we are going to do something, now is the time to do it.”

The couple never saw themselves going on a path of property restoration projects; however, with time, effort, and sweat, they are taking it one step at a time.

“It all started as a joke, when I saw it listed I thought it was interesting and I joked with my daughter and son-in-law and said ‘If I bought this place, would y’all rent it for me?’ I did not mean it, they were looking for a place to live at the time,” said Jeff.

The building is an older building that has been abandoned for three years. The Juneks have worked on clearing out the previous collection of trash and furniture while envisioning the restoration of the property.

“We can see potential in the building, we like the whole historical vibe of the building, but you have to have vision. It is very very run down, it has been abandoned for three years, and even before that time, a lot had taken place in there that was not geared towards taking care of it,” said Lesa.

If the walls could talk, the history of the property would contain stories, but based on the architecture, the Juneks found pieces of history.

“Jeff started digging into it and found the original interior brick under the drywall. There is original wood flooring underneath the vinyl, and the original wood ceilings have been covered by drywall,” said Lesa.

The process of restoration is lengthy and difficult, and depending on the conditions of the build, it could need various steps. The couple plans on keeping as much history within the building while updating the plumbing and electrical so they can turn it into studio apartments.

“We are trying to restore as much of it as possible, starting this month with the foundation. We have got to get the foundation done before we can do anything else. We have done the cleanup, and we’ll have to get the roof redone,” said Jeff, “We are having to put more sweat equity into this than we had planned, but overall Lesa is really the researcher, so she is finding all the historical photos and deciding what we need to do to maintain the historical essence, and I am just herding cats trying to get the right subcontractors.”

The Juneks have already had their first potential resident visit the property.

“The old owner left all this stuff in there, and there was so much to clean out. One of the things that was left was all these beds and when we first walked through it, I saw all these footprints across the bedspread. I told my family ‘Those are raccoon footprints’ and everyone saw and said ‘Sure they are, whatever’. A month later we come in to do some work, and I walk up the stairs into one of the rooms, and I look in the bathroom and this huge raccoon is taking up the whole bottom of the shower,” said Lesa.

The raccoon has not since returned; however, the couple did take steps to protect the property from unwanted guests. “We closed up the windows, because there was a lot of broken ones, but by the time we open, I am sure the raccoon will have another place to live, but we have not seen him since,” said Lesa.

This is not the first property the couple owns out in the area.

“We also own land out there in Port Lavaca, so we knew we liked the area. We were thinking about when Jeff retires someday, maybe we spend more time out there since we have some land at Magnolia Beach, it is just down the road from Port Lavaca,” said Lesa.

Jeff and Lesa have been married for 32 years, and have been in the Richmond-Rosenberg area for the past 30 years. When he is not working on restoring the property, Jeff works in IT.

“I have been working in IT for 30 years,” said Jeff, “I have got another 10 years before I retire, and this project is not a substitute for my work.” Lesa is a retired home school teacher.

“I am a certified teacher, I homeschooled our five kids all the way through and I am a grandmother now,” said Lesa.

While Home & Garden TV (HGTV) lead many to believe these types of restoration projects are easy, Jeff and Lesa know they have a big restoration project ahead of them, but they plan to take it one nail at a time.