"At eleven feet four it comes in the front door, I'm told," said new Mattabassett Canoe Club owner Dan Cronin
Cronin and his wife and son were at the restaurant on the banks of the Connecticut River preparing for the Spring opening next Thursday of the Mattabasset Canoe Club, formerly know as Harbor Park. So far the river has not its way into the building this year, but the recent flood stage has Cronin worried.
"During the last crest I removed the front door and sandbagged, but with so much to do to get the place open I don't have the time or energy," Cronin said.
The restaurant has had a major facelift as the Canoe Club with years of rotting wood removed from the bar, and a major effort to make the second level bright and appealing. The views of the river from the upper level are spectacular.
Cronin is attempting to transform the restaurant from one with a questionable reputation which served a rock and roll clientele to a where the food is as good as the view, and patrons can bring family.
Cronin is still negotiating with the city over a fire alarm for the building. The city owns the building which is leased to Frank Maratta, and sublet to Cronin. For years Maratta operated the restaurant, against code, without a fire alarm. When fire marshals inspected the building prior to Cronin leasing it, they did not notice the missing fire alarm, but a later inspection revealed its absence. Cronin has asked the city to install the alarm because they own the building. At the last Economic Development Committee meeting, the EDC recommended a reduction in rent which would account for half the cost of installation.
"We're still negotiating," Cronin said.
This year Cronin also lost the support of his partner in the business, John Krevey,' who died unexpectedly in the past year.
"It's difficult of course," Cronin said. "He was my business partner but he was also a good friend."
Despite the work ahead, Cronin feels confident the Canoe Club to welcome patrons to the spring opening on Thursday April 21.
11 comments:
So--for as long as that building has been used as an eating and drinking establishment it was either never inspected by the fire marshal or the lack of a fire alarm was ignored.Where is the accountability? Is it a record keeping problem? Are there records being kept? the last thing Middletown needs is another Station nightclub-like tragedy.
Is anyone else out there scratching there heads and asking how for the past twenty or more years the FIRE Marshall didn't notice the lack of alarms ? What did he notice then??? Don't they have a check list? And the owner Marratta could gave potentially known that he was operating what could have but dud not turn into another Station Night Club fire tragedy? Does anyone else see this depravity? And the river floods every year. No brainer.
Maybe this is why they call a free drink with every "free drink" the Fire Marshall's Special.
Does anyone remember the Thornton Special?
Dan, So sorry to hear of the loss of your good friend and partner! I'm sure taking on the responsibility of restoring that property to a properly functioning restaurant is a daunting challenge, and without your friend and partner, even more challenging! I wish you all the best in that endeavor. I'm sure others are with me in wishing you the best in your wholesome efforts to make the most of that property; bringing it into good standing and providing a valuable service to the City by offering a fine dining establishment on the river. My condolences, and best wishes for the future!
So our fire department doesn't inspect restaurants and night clubs? Makes me feel safe.
Hang in there Dan. We have a lot of faith in your ability to overcome these obstacles. There is a buzz around town about the restaurant improvements & we look forward to patronizing your establishment.
The fire marshal would make over $98 thousand under the new budget, making that position one of the highest paid in the City (Heck, one of the highest paid fire marshals in the State), plus a city car. The Deputy will make $85 thousand base salary plus overtime plus use of a car for his daily transport.Both could reach 100 g's!
And Harbor Park went uninspected(or under inspected). Time for some accountability.But rest assured, the fire tax didn't go up. Hopefully businesses won't either!
why did you let the anonymous person swear with the A word? disgraceful--my kids are sometimes reading with me since this is about their town!!!!!!!!!!
I'm so sorry about that anonynous and obscene comment that was posted - I thought I hit delete.
To all the anonymous posters concerned about the inspections and abatements. The City Fire Marshal's Office have done their jobs all along. If you have concerns I suggest calling the Middletown Fire Department and requesting the information from the Fire Marshal's office. The building is fully sprinklered and is quite safe. As far as the Station Night Club fire goes, two completely different buldings. The new Canoe club has fire sprinklers, the Station did not. The Station also had a working fire alarm system. People ignored it's activation.
The existence of a fire suppression systems allows building owners more leeway in the codes. It is a life safety tool, and works much better than a smoke detector. It allows occupants the time to exit the building safely.
Mr. Cronin, to open a restaurant that is guaranteed to flood every year tells us that you are obviously an optimist, something needed in this world. But I'm not sure you can build a reputation as a fine restaurant in a building that is wet and moldy. There is a solution that seems so obvious to me. Why not remove the lower (soggy) level, leaving only support beams and create a building on stilts like those at shorelines around the world? The river will move in and out without damage underneath the deck and upper stories, which are the best part of the place anyway! I wish you all luck and hope you succeed.
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