Historic downtown center seeking new business
Huntington — It’s been about three weeks since Boston Beanery closed at Heritage Village in downtown Huntington. So far, there’s been interest expressed in the facility but no takers.
“Most people think it needs some updating and some improvement. Updating would be helpful, but it’s very charming and a unique facility. I think it has lots of potential,” Realtor Francis McGuire said of the property, owned by the Greater Huntington Park and Recreation District.
That potential extends to the rest of Heritage Village, park director Jim McClelland said, though some businesses in the complex have been struggling since the closing of the restaurant.
Boston Beanery, a restaurant chain out of Morgantown, W.Va., that had been leasing the restaurant from the park district, closed both its Huntington store and downtown Ashland location in early July. Owner David Seman said Boston Beanery’s corporate headquarters had listed the two stores up for sale on its Web site about a month prior to that.
“It’s certainly been a tough economy for casual dining for sure, so we want to get some local ownership to help us out with those stores,” he told The Herald-Dispatch after the stores closed.
