Five Corners Goes Italian

Good news – the owners of the Heathcote Tavern Building at 2-4 Weaver Street say that they have found a tenant to open an Italian restaurant on the site. According to information communicated at the Trustees Law Committee, the new tenants are Italian and will open a restaurant called Apulia, provided that the Village renews the lease for the Village-owned driveway that leads to the Tavern parking lot.

The five-year lease for the driveway expired in May and Developer Frederick Fish has requested a 15-year lease renewal.

Members of the Heathcote Five Corners Coalition have expressed their concern about the Village’s lack of communication with residents about the lease proposal and have asked the Village to provide details for review. The Coalition also believes that it is not in the best interest of the Village to enter into a longer-term lease with different restrictions than the former 5-year year provided to Fish. In a letter to the Mayor and Trustees, the Coalition says:

Even rolling over the Lease on the same terms as the current lease does not itself achieve the stated objectives of the Village with respect to development at 2-4 Weaver Street (including the preservation of the Tavern and reducing traffic entering and entering on Weaver Street from the area near the dance studio), except to the limited extent that the current use restrictions require operation of a restaurant and cocktail lounge under the terms of the current lease.