Updated 06/08/2009 05:51 PM
Pierce's 1894 House still on the market after auction
ELMRIA HEIGHTS, N.Y. -- Pierce's 1894 House has housed many business endeavors in the last century. And even though the restaurant has been closed since last summer, it will always be remembered as a special part of the Southern Tier.
"We had 375 seats, we had people coming from all over the world. We had an international chef and bank of chefs in the kitchen. We had a wonderful wait staff and bartenders, elegant place. It was wonderful," said Deborah Pierce, the owner of the property.
But last July, the Elmira Heights restaurant became a victim of the economic crisis.
"We were paying about $1,200 a week just to start paying off the taxes from the county and the state and we couldn't survive in that kind of an economic climate," said Pierce.
The building is assessed at about $400,000, but the highest bid at the auction came in at $90,000 and it was from the Pierce family themselves.
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"Obviously the bidding here was not what the Pierce family wanted to have occur, so as a result, all of the contents now will be sold off including the bar, all the equipment all of the furniture, everything that moves or is even attached to the building," said Arthur Ambrose, a broker with Realty USA who's working to sell the property.
Although the building itself didn't sell during the auction, people were lining up to buy anything and everything from inside of it.
"I've always known that it was a fabulous restaurant, it had a lot of equipment and it's sort of nostalgic also," said Richard Lerman, the owner of The Village Inn Restaurant in Hammondsport.
The hope is that once the building is cleared of the restaurant materials, it will be easier to sell it as simply a commercial space.
"It's a key corner in Elmira Heights and it will really bring back a lot of, I think, a lot of prosperity to the area," said Pierce.
Pierce says since the bids came in so low for the property, the family will pursue an adjustment to its assessed value.
In its 115 year history, the 1894 House has been a straw hat factory, a cigar factory, a bowling alley, a lunch counter and a hotel.