Becket Woman Buys Country Charm Property
 |
Robin Sayers of Becket placed the high bid of $350,000 on behalf of herself and partner Richard Rockefeller, quickly cutting off any competition for the Route 8 property.
"I've looked at many, many buildings," said Sayer afterward. "I went by this one and thought 'I wish I could buy that place.'"
The 6,200-square-foot restaurant, two cottages and a garage-type structure on nearly five acres were foreclosed on more than a month ago by Berkshire Bank after owner Trent P. Gaylord defaulted on a $300,000 mortgage dating from 2003.
More than three dozen bidders and bystanders gathered in the midday heat to the rear of the closed restaurant as auctioneer David A. Mendel of Aaron Posnik & Co. Auctioneers read off a lengthy description of the property and the conditions to the sale.
Maybe a third were interested in the property, the others in the auction. Some had come hoping to bid on the contents of the restaurant only to find that the personal and real property were to be sold in one package and "as is."
 Robin Sayers, left, places the winning bid. |
Mendel tried to encourage the bidding to begin at $300,000, but the first amount tossed in was for $100,000. Sayers, who had been standing with Gaylord, walked forward and bid $300,000.
Almost immediately, she bumped it up to $350,000, effectively ending the bidding.
The price was too rich for David Schwartz of New Lebanon, N.Y. With real estate holdings in Pittsfield, he was interested in the Cheshire property, but not that much. "That's crazy," he said.
A partnership that had purchased another former restaurant property at auction a few miles south was also interested in expanding its real estate empire but didn't bid.
"I was afraid to scratch my nose," said Christopher Gian as partner Shane Peaslee laughed.
Sayers had a method to her madness. "I wanted them to know I was serious," she said, and she didn't want a bidding war. She wanted the property, period.
In fact, she and Gaylord said a purchase-and-sale agreement had already been drawn up — for $350,000 — the day before but the bank said the auction would go on.
Sayers said she'd already spoken with the Board of Health and other town officers about her plans for the buildings. She expects to invest about $100,000 in the restaurant building to fix the roof and other problems, with a little help from her two contractor brothers.
She and her sister, Emily Mole, also want to transform the dilapidated garage into a flea market and antique shop. "I've been collecting jewelry for forever," said Mole. "Being able to have our antiques here will be really nice."
Sayers, who's worked as a bartender and bar manager, fast-food manager, car salesman and in finance, said she has the experience to run a dance hall. She stressed that the hall would be "a nice place ... a classy place" that would cater to children and adults, ballroom dancers, and country and Christian music fans.
She was inspired by the dearth of dance halls in Berkshire County and planned to bring "quality" live bands in to play. Sayers said she also plans on having "very, very strict rules" for the sale of alcohol. She and Rockefeller and their daughter plan to live on the property, which will help them maintain control.
The hall will offer a pub-style menu with healthful fare and "very few deep-fried anything," she said. "I'm really excited about this. We have a lot of ideas."
"I think this is going to be a good thing for Cheshire," added Mole.
For Gaylord, it was a bittersweet end. His family had operated the Country Charm for 33 years before he ran into financial difficulties and had to close it in 2004.
.JPG) |
"He was really a good friend to me. He would call me up and see how I was doing," said Gaylord. But now, he said, it was time to move on with his life.
Sayers wasn't sure if she'll be bringing back the restaurant's famed broasted chicken. "I might be able to get the recipe from Trent's mother."
