Restaurateurs scrap plans to buy antique center

LACONIA — The city’s three-way deal to purchase a portion of the Laconia Antique Center to expand the Colonial Theatre is no more.

“At this point, the co-buyer deal between the restauranteurs and the city is not moving forward,” City Manager Kirk Beattie said Tuesday morning. “I think we were very close, extremely close.”

In March 2024, city councilors approved their end of a deal to purchase the back two-thirds of the antique center, a commercial property owned by Charlie St. Clair at 601 Main St., for $700,000. 

Originally the location of a Newberry’s Department Store, St. Clair operates an antique consignment store with a lunch counter there, and initially listed the property at $1.2 million. 

Would-be restaurateurs Tyler Hooff and Melissa Darling were the third party to the deal, and would have spent $500,000 to purchase the front-third of 601 Main, where they said they’d open an Italian-American restaurant called the darling which would cater to the residents and visitors. 

Councilors considered either bonding their end of the purchase or using grant monies to fund it.

Less than a year later, in January, the building was back on the market. At that time, St. Clair was seeking $1.5 million for its sale, according to a Roche Realty listing. But at the beginning of 2025, and despite the building having been listed again at a higher price, city leadership was still optimistic a deal would be struck.

The terms changed, slightly, as the three parties — who would not have gone into business with one another — worked through a purchase-and-sales agreement. At the time, city leaders were anticipating paying less money for less space within the building, which would have been converted to commercial condominiums, though details were never hammered down. Hooff and Darling would have taken on a larger portion of the building.

Darling on Tuesday referred questions regarding the transaction to Mike Fracchia, her father and an investor in the development. Fracchia would have leased the property to Darling and Hooff.

For the better part of two years, Fracchia said, things were looking positive. Ultimately, his party became nervous about a condition of the sale which would have allowed St. Clair a period of time to notify tenants and move out of the building.

"I was concerned that, months down the line, the building wouldn't be vacated," he said, noting their plan was solid and working with the city was a good experience. "Ultimately, I got nervous that, six months down the line, I wouldn't have a clean and empty building."

He said he was enthusiastic about the development, noting it could have benefitted downtown and the theater. He invested a lot into the process, citing legal and inspection fees — the process was complicated with a lot of moving parts. Now, they'll look for another property.

"We're going to look for the perfect location," he said.

Purchasing some portion of the back side of the building, which has egress to Hanover Street, would have facilitated the expansion of the Colonial Theatre. Theater organizers said they’re in need of more space for storage and dressing rooms, plus allowing cargo to come in off Hanover could alleviate showtime congestion on Canal Street. 

The theater, organizers said last year, is 750 seats and the backstage area is small, with access to the stage only available on the Canal side.

Beattie on Tuesday noted the deal was complex, with lots of specifics to agree to, conditions which would be ordinarily difficult during any property sale. In this case, they were even more so because there were three parties involved, all with their own ideas. The parties worked diligently to come to a resolution, but it didn’t work out. 

“It was just some of the finer details,” he said, noting if the right opportunity came along in the future, councilors may still be interested in pursuing a purchase of part of the building.

St. Clair, who represents Laconia as a Democrat in the Statehouse, on Tuesday said it was long clear to him a year ago the deal on the table wasn’t going through. His building is still listed for sale at $1.5 million. 

“A year ago or so,” he said. “This has been going on two years, so I’d say a year ago.”

Hooff and Darling apparently backed out of the deal just a few weeks ago, in June. 

“I’m still willing to work with the city and what they want to do,” St. Clair said. “The Colonial Theatre is a jewel for the city.” 

The Laconia Antique Center was most recently assessed at $564,600, according to a property database. It’s on a 0.3-acre lot and is just under 14,000 square feet. Constructed in 1950, it’s been a fixture front-and-center on Main Street for 75 years. St. Clair purchased it in 2015.

An inspection report, conducted by Jared Dassler of Alpha Home & Commercial Inspections on April 24, 2024, is 43 pages long and describes the property — the good and the bad — in great detail. He observed some parts of the building are in fine condition, while others are in need of repair, and included recommendations to that effect.