Maine country inn could be yours — for 200 words

Ever dream of being an innkeeper? Here’s your chance.

The owner of the Center Lovell Inn and Restaurant in southwestern Maine is set to retire — and is ready to give away the 210-year-old country inn, valued at $905,000, to the winner of an essay contest.

Applicants are to outline both their eagerness to run the business and their qualifications to do so in a 200-word essay, owner Janice Sage told Reuters earlier this week. The conditions to winning the contest include agreeing to operate the inn for at least one full year, and keeping the inn painted white, with green or black roofing and shutters.

“I would really like it to go to somebody where it’s something they really want to do and they’ll carry it on for a while,” she told the Toronto Star.

The winner should also be prepared for hard work — and 17-hour work days.

“Unless you raise 14 kids, you’re not going to be used to this,” Sage told the Boston Globe of caring for seven rooms a day, seven days a week in high season. “Look, this is something you start when you’re young. It takes a lot of stamina.”

The 12-plus-acre property, which has stunning views of New Hampshire’s White Mountains, also includes a guest house and historic barn.

Sage hopes to collect 7,500 submissions by May 17 — all including an entrance fee of $125, which will ultimately cover the cost of the sale and leave $20,000 as a bonus for the new owner.

"There are a lot of talented people that can’t, just can’t, go out and buy an inn like this," said Sage, who has been running the inn for the last 22 years. “Now all they need to do is write and convince me.”

Sage herself took ownership of the inn after winning a similar essay contest launched by the owner before her.

"I came here on angel’s wings," she said. “I hope I can do the same for someone else.”

Sage will select the top 20 essays. From there, two anonymous local residents will select a winning entry.

“I’ll miss it for all the good reasons,” Sage said of leaving her beloved inn. “I’ve loved it.”