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Burned Store Challenges Putney Community By Howard Weiss-Tisman, Reformer Staff Photos: Zachary P. Stephens/Reformer Tuesday, May 6 PUTNEY -- The yellow police tape was still up around the Putney General Store Monday morning after a fire destroyed part of the building Saturday. It was the first business day after the weekend blaze and business owner Erhan Oge met local officials, along with an insurance agent and a state fire marshal, to try to piece together a plan to rehabilitate the structure and reopen the business. The late night fire tore through the building Saturday. On Monday morning, the blue sky could be seen through the remaining rafters of the roof. The fire burned a semi-circle in the front of the building and it looked like something had taken a bite out of the top floor. Oge took photos with his cell phone and answered questions as the inspectors walked around the burnt debris, which littered the parking spaces in front of the building. The fire started on the third floor. The roof and third floor were mostly destroyed and the second and first floors suffered major water damage, Oge said later in the day. Oge is also owner of Putney Village Pizza across the street. He closed it Monday afternoon to give him time to answer all the phone calls. The pizza restaurant will reopen today. "We've got to work," he said. "People are hungry and we've got to feed them." It was too early to know how long it will take to reopen the general store. Paul Bruhn, executive director of the Preservation Trust of Vermont, travels the state to help towns save their historic structures. Each building plays a role in a town's overall character, Bruhn said, and it can be a challenge to replace a business like the general store. "Our downtowns are very fragile places," he said. "It's not just about losing the general store, but it has a potential negative effect on other businesses in the community." Bruhn recognized the closing of Heartstone Books earlier this year and said there are now two fewer reasons for people to travel to Putney. "The combination of the bookstore and cafe was one of the important gathering places and it created a real sense of community," he said. "The general store was also an important gathering place and putting them both together, it will be a challenging time for folks who are really committed to downtown Putney." A fire destroyed the Offerings Jewelry store, which is next door, in December 2002, and building owner Neil Madow said he knows how the event can affect a business, as well as a community. "I'm sure the town will be patient and supportive, and hopefully they will be able to get back on their feet," said Madow. "Realistically, it will probably take about a year before it is open again." After the last fire, Madow installed a fire wall between his building and the general store. There was some water damage to his building this weekend, but it was largely saved by the upgrades he invested in after the last disaster. "You have to keep it in perspective," Madow said. "No one got hurt and the firefighters did a fantastic job." By late in the afternoon Monday, a cleaning service was going through the building Madow owns and removing carpets dripping with water. A construction crew was shoveling up piles of scorched wood in front of the general store and filling a dumpster. The windows were all boarded up. Oge looked weary Monday afternoon. He said he wants to restore the building, paying attention to its historic character, but he had no idea Monday how that would happen or how soon the general store would open. He met with engineers through the afternoon and said he would decide in the coming days how to proceed with renovating the damaged property. "It's not going to be a fast project," he said. "There's no word on when we will be able to open." Lyssa Papazian, a former Selectboard member and a historic preservation consultant, knows Oge has a lot to think about, but hoped the property owner would consider the historic character of the building as he moves ahead. On Sunday morning Papazian, who is also a member of the Putney Historic Society, went down to the site and offered to help Oge with state forms to apply for historic preservation help. "I don't want to see this building lost," she said Monday. "This is one of the oldest buildings in town and is probably one of the oldest operating general stores in Vermont. It is a Putney institution." The building is a former grist mill, and has been operating as a store since 1843. Papazian said the state has programs available that offer tax credits to business owners who work to retain the historic aspects of their buildings. "I know people have to assess it," Papazian said. "I hope it can be rebuilt and not replaced." As the rehabilitation progresses, however, property owners walk a fine line between retaining 200-year-old features while meeting modern safety and zoning codes. "It gets down to whether the integrity of the building is there and it conveys the history," said Chris Cochran, who is the tax credit coordinator for the Agency of Commerce and Community Development. "It's like Washington's ax. If it's passed down and the handle is replaced, and then the ax, is it still Washington's ax?" Cochran said state historic preservationists don't split hairs as building owners rehabilitate properties. And he said in many ways it is just as important that general stores remain open and viable, as much for what they provide small towns as for how they look. "A village store plays an important role in a community. Regardless of what the building looks like," said Cochran. "It's where we see our neighbors. It's what makes Vermont, Vermont." Howard Weiss-Tisman can be reached at hwtisman@reformer.com or 802-254-2311, ext. 279.
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