Fox Market and Bar, a restaurant and community store that caters to the LGBTQ+ community, won approval to expand its business to a historic building in Barre over a local nonprofit that promotes downtown development.
Barre’s City Council meeting on Tuesday drew more than 100 attendees and 44 public comments, largely in support of the market being able to purchase the historic Wheelock House. Fox Market and the Barre Partnership also presented their visions for how to renovate and use the space — both focused on historic restoration, but in very different ways.
Councilors voted 5-2 to authorize city manager Nicolas Storellicastro to negotiate the purchase of the Wheelock House, located at 135 North Main Street, with Fox Market, Storellicastro told VTDigger Wednesday.
Fox Market opened in what had been a vacant building on Route 2 in East Montpelier two years ago and has been growing “with the community” since its inception, co-owner Doni Cain told the council.
The market side offers a combination of everyday convenience goods and specialty food products, while the bar has a rotating menu and regular events. Co-owner Liv Dunton said they strove to create “something like your friend’s living room” in feel and appearance.
The duo thought the Wheelock House was beautiful and had what they were looking for in a new space, including the bones of a commercial kitchen to expand their food operations, Dunton said.
Cain said they were committed to preserving the historic nature of the building, an 1870s-era law office that also once hosted a bank and a senior center, according to the National Park Service. It is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Barre Partnership now occupies the building. The nonprofit is the city’s designated downtown organization, which means that it coordinates support for local businesses and hosts community events such as summer concerts and farmers markets.
The partnership itself does not have enough money to buy the building. City Councilor Thom Lauzon said the purchaser needed $250,000 in equity along with $300,000 in estimated restoration costs, but the nonprofit’s annual revenue is only about $100,000.
Instead, a new corporation called Wheelock House LLC, composed of local developers and investors, presented a plan in which the corporation would buy the building and the partnership would rent it while restoration work is being done. Ownership would transfer to the partnership after 10 years.
LLC representative Bill Koch provided a long list of what the building needs, including asbestos and lead mitigation, roof repairs, a new heating system, and insulation. Lauzon also told VTDigger the building needs a new wheelchair ramp.
“It was important for us to find a way to keep that home and preserve it,” said partnership President Chandra Pollard, describing it as the “Stuart Little home” of Barre city.
People at the meeting pointed out the irony of a downtown revitalization organization facing off against a business aiming to revitalize Barre’s downtown. Supporters of Fox Market said it would draw in a fresh crowd to the city — and some residents said it would encourage them to spend more money in the city, rather than stray to Montpelier for their social life.
Local resident Ellen Kaye said she grew up in a working-class rural town similar to Barre, where businesses were boarded up and kids left as soon as they came of age.
She said Fox Market’s offer was an extraordinary opportunity to attract young people to the city.
“When was the last time we had this many people under 50 in this room?” she said. “Places that are thriving have places for people to be.”
When Fox Market opened in East Montpelier, it became one of the first LGBTQ+ bars operating in Vermont in years. On Tuesday, no commenters referred directly to its connection to that community, but some cited its atmosphere of inclusivity and diversity as one of its strengths.
Proponents of the partnership’s plan cited its long track record of development in Barre and its three-year residency in the Wheelock House. Others said its proposal for restoration seemed specific and well thought out.
Confusion over Councilor Lauzon’s connection to the partnership led to some sparks during public comments. Two people said Lauzon was the registered agent of the Wheelock House LLC, leading him to ponder aloud, “Are people on drugs?”
Lauzon told VTDigger he had no connection to the corporation, and the extent of his involvement was to help the partnership connect with potential tax credits. But documents from the Vermont Secretary of State’s website show that Lauzon was the first registered agent for the corporation, then transferred that registration to the partnership’s executive director, Tracie Lewis, in February.
Reached for comment on Wednesday, Lauzon admitted he was the one who set up the corporation, but it was simply a way for him to help the partnership with tax credits. He said he had never solicited funds on its behalf.
Lewis told VTDigger on Wednesday that she was sad that the partnership lost its bid, since the Wheelock House had been its home for three and a half years.
“I just really want to see that it gets fixed and brought back to the beauty that it deserves,” she said. “I thought … it would be a great thing for the city to have their downtown organization in the prettiest historic building on Main Street.”
The partnership’s lease of the building extends through the end of May, Lewis said. She had already heard from “probably five business owners” by Wednesday morning, offering some space in their locations.
“I know that we will be able to find a new home in Barre,” she said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled Ellen Kaye’s name.
