A throwback to the traditional family motels of decades ago has undergone a major facelift.

News 12's Doug Geed takes us to the reopening of an iconic East End waterfront motel. The Silver Sands Motel was built in 1957 on a sleepy cove in Peconic Bay overlooking Shelter Island.

For 65 years it was run by the Jurzenia family, and it was the epitome of a family-friendly motel-on-the-beach and welcomed many of the same guests year after year.

But it's now under new ownership and has undergone a major overhaul. “I think the appeal is obvious, it's the property and the history.

"For me the biggest appeal though was that this property was really the backdrop and almost central character in people's lives and for us that's crucially important and we want that to continue,” says Alex Perros, Silver Sands Motel.

There's 20 motel units, separate cottages and two larger houses for rent -- all of them steps from the quiet and calm bay beach.

Co-owner Ryan Hardy, a chef, says there's new food options including a diner off the lobby and an outdoor oyster bar.

“We're going to do some cookouts on the beach, in the sand. Obviously we have a wood oven over there to do pizzas. So it's meant to be a throwback era. There's no modern cuisine,” says Hardy.