Dealing with blind submissions, rumors and phantom offers on the Afton Inn

Glory days – the characteristic porch system that gave the building much of its 19th Century, Montview Hotel ambience, ran afoul of the type of 20th Century transportation pictured, so we have been told by BAR member and local historian Duane Vaughan.

The Front Royal Board of Architectural Review (BAR) appeared swayed in their decision to deny a demolition application to facilitate redevelopment of the Afton Inn site by a counter-proposal submitted during its review of the MODE-EDA demo-redevelop plan.  As Royal Examiner reported at the time, that proposal from Winchester-based Urban Development Partners expressed a belief it could accomplish renovation of the existing 149-year-old, 20-year vacant building at or even below the cost proposed by MODE for demolition and construction of a similarly designed structure.

However, Economic Development Authority Executive Director Jennifer McDonald notes that UDP renovation proposal and cost estimate was made without representatives of the group ever having requested an inspection of the building’s interior or exterior.  “I never heard a word from that group until we applied for demolition,” McDonald says. – And apparently the word she did “hear” did not include a request to see exactly what they would be working with in their proposal to renovate.

In contrast, MODE architectural partner Jim Burton conducted a tour of the Afton Inn’s interior for the BAR (only the two male members were physically able to undertake that tour) and media on August 15.  And it was apparent Burton was very familiar with that gutted and crumbling interior at that time.

Not so glory days – above, at building’s back side Jim Burton prepares the hardy for the trip inside the Afton Inn on August 15 during BAR meeting; below, the first room on the tour sans ground floor that deterred some from attempting entry, if not board member Michael Whitlow.

As we observed during the BAR discussion of the EDA’s demolition application, the UDP proposal mirrored the MODE plan to a great extent describing a first floor “restaurant/retail space complimented by 8-10 studio lofts on the upper floors of the existing building and any added space.”  UDP did add the option of the upper floor lofts being utilized as “upscale hotel rooms” or extended stay “executive suites” rather than apartments; and did submit a concise redevelopment schedule.

That schedule described application for a Virginia Department of Historic Restoration tax credit “filed no later than 10/31/2018” and a final project completion date “no later than 6/2019”. See related story  But as noted in our accompanying story, with MODE scheduled to meet with state representatives about the availability of those tax credits next Tuesday, 10/31/2017, they may be in a position to get in front of the projected UDP schedule, and with foreknowledge of what the condition of the structure they are dealing with actually is.

McDonald says a rumor that the EDA had rejected a $900,000 offer on the Afton Inn property was “absolutely false”.  There were two offers she acknowledged, one of $1,000 from the Mike Silek-Shelley Cook group that expressed interest in a restoration project in mid-2016.  The other offer was for $1 (one dollar), McDonald recalled.

As for a proposal from local businesswoman Arlene Ballou, owner of Brooklyn’s Market on East Main Street, McDonald points to a communications gap as Ballou’s proposal came to the Town as the EDA was in the midst of an extended discussion with the Silek-Cook group.  McDonald said that discussion began several months before Silek-Cook sent a Letter of Intent (LOI) to the EDA on August 15, 2016.  The EDA then discussed moving forward with Silek-Cook at a closed session of August 26, 2016.  When the EDA brought that proposal and intent to move forward with Silek-Cook to the Town at a September 6 work session, they were made aware of Ballou’s LOI submitted to the Town on September 2, 2016.

McDonald explained the situation to Ballou, writing her on September 22, 2016, “I can definitely imagine your surprise, because I was just as surprised when we got in closed to discuss our LOI (with Silek-Cook) and Doug Napier passed out your email … It would have helped me tremendously to have seen your letter of intent before that night, so that my Board could have seen 2 proposals rather than just the one we had received.”

The option agreement the EDA entered into with Silek-Cook was not abandoned until almost six months later.  On February 14, 2017 Silek wrote the EDA in part, “It is with much regret that I must inform that Shelly Cook and I will be unable to exercise our option agreement, and subsequent Contract to purchase the former Afton Inn on Main Street in Front Royal … It simply came down to the amount of equity infusion that we would be required to make in the absence of any grant money being available.  We are very disappointed, as it was our desire to return the building to its 19^th century elegance.”

Not exactly stairways to heaven – left to second floor; right to the third if you dare.

And then on July 28, the EDA announced its commitment to the plan for the Afton Inn site submitted by the MODE Partnership group – a plan it seems that remains fluid to this day, with a final look at the potential that state historic tax credits could make restoration, rather than demolition and redevelopment a financially feasible option.

Stay tuned for future updates on the Afton Inn’s “Last Stand”.