Despite its prime waterfront location, no one responded to the town’s offer to lease and renovate the former Cherry’s Bait and Tackle Shop.
Potential bidders say the town priced itself out of the market on the restricted-use building, with high monthly rent and requiring repairs costing up to $100,000. So, the building remains vacant as the busy season approaches and the town regroups to consider what to do next.
“We were all disappointed. There seemed to be a lot of interest and we were expecting to get multiple responses,” said Town Manager Derek Brindisi.
Located at 151 Water St., Cherry’s was a fixture on the waterfront for decades. It closed for good last August, with the town taking control of the property for back rent and taxes owed. The Town of Plymouth owns the adjacent wharf and several surrounding parcels which are leased to the businesses on the land.
The town issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the Cherry’s site on March 26, with responses due by April 29. More than 30 entities registered to download the RFP and six people attended the on-site inspection of the property before the deadline to make a proposal. But all decided against bidding.
“It was too expensive,” said Alex Murphy, a Plymouth resident who works in national development of hospitality businesses. “It was a one-sided deal, with the tenant burdened with all the renovations.”
Specifically, the town offered a 5-year lease with options to extend for an additional 15 years. The first year’s rent was set at $42,848 and required repairs included fixing the roof, windows and updating the plumbing and electrical systems.
Like several other potential bidders contacted by the Independent, Scott Hokanson, president of Brabo Insurance, agreed the financials were unrealistic. Hokanson hoped to convert the site for multiple uses, including space for a gift shop, local artists gallery, and maintaining a small bait and tackle section.
Beyond the cost in dollars, the town’s requirement for the new tenant to obtain a state waterways license, commonly called a “Chapter 91” license, is a barrier for many businesses, said Josh Bows, president of Merrill Engineers and Land Surveyors.
“Through our marine division, we routinely obtain Chapter 91 licenses for our clients and it’s not easy,” Bows said. “It can be a six to nine months process, and it’s the state. It’s not just a town permit.”
Because the Cherry’s site is “filled tidelands” Chapter 91 applies. State regulations define acceptable “water-dependent” uses as marinas, storage areas and other commercial or recreational boating facilities; facilities for fishing, swimming, diving, and other water-based recreational activities; aquariums and other education research or training facilities dedicated primarily to marine purposes; aquaculture facilities; waterborne passenger transportation; restaurants and retail facilities primarily serving patrons of water-dependent use on the site; bait shops; boat sales and other marine-oriented retail facilities.
Bows attended the site inspection and said he was interested in bidding.
“I’m born and raised in Plymouth, and had a dream to run Cherry’s,” Bows said. “I wanted to expand my marine division there and have a small section selling ice and some basic supplies for people who want to fish the jetty or locally in Plymouth.”
But he too felt the dollars made no sense and declined to bid.
Select Board member Bill Keohan, who is a real estate broker, said he’s not surprised the RFP for Cherry’s came up empty.
“Speaking from experience, just throwing it out there as a distressed property, you are not going to get a lot of interest,” Keohan said. “It’s hard to charge a lot of money for a fixer upper.”
Keohan said the town should consider seeking grant money to make some repairs to the Cherry’s building, so it will be more desirable. He also hopes the administration will consult with businesses along the waterfront and other community groups, to evaluate how that property could best support the waterfront.
Brindisi said the administration will reach out for more input and look at alternative financial models for the property, such as setting a lower minimum rent or possibly making some repairs to improve its market value.
“It’s my intention to talk with those people who expressed some interest and get a sense of the barriers. Once we do that level of analysis, I expect we will go out to bid again,” he said.
Michael can be reached at michael@plymouthindependent.org.