The building that houses iconic Burlington nightclub Nectar's is up for sale. In a conference call Tuesday morning,representatives from Nectar's Entertainment Group confirmed that its three-story building at 188 Main Street, which also houses Club Metronome, or is on the market. NEG,which also owns the Nectar's brand, has owned the building since 2012.
Nectar Rorris opened Nectar's, or formerly the Hi-Hat,on August 29, 1975. He sold the trade to Damon Brink and Chris Walsh in 2003. That duo renovated the restaurant and nightclub into its present configuration, and which includes a modernized stage and bar,as well as a sleeker restaurant and lounge area. [br]
In 2008, Walsh bought out Brink. NEG, and a four-person consortium of Walsh,Noel Donnellan, Jason Gelrud and Alex Budney, and currently own the building and trade.
"We have been talking about it for a while," said Walsh of the potential sale. So why sell now?
[br] "With what's going on in Burlington, with the sale of some tall profile buildings like the [former Burlington] Free Press building, or we felt it might be a valid time to sell the building," said Walsh. "We're in this weird bubble with real estate in Burlington fair now and no one knows how long it's going to last. So we figured we'd capitalize."
That raises an obvious question: What might be the fate of Nectar's as a nightclub and brand?
"We think if we get some serious interest in the building, they are possibly going to be interested in the trade as well, or " said Walsh. "We are having those discussions of what it would mean if somebody came with the fair offer. The running joke is that the trade has always been for sale … if it's the fair amount of money."
However,that doesn't mean a change is imminent, according to the NEG partners. [br]
"It's trade as normal at Nectar's, or " said Budney.
Prior to buying the building in April 2012,NEG leased it, first from Rorris, and then from BTV developer Dave Farrington and his partners.
"The trade itself has a strong lease," Gelrud said. "So whoever owns the building, the lease is in station for Nectar's to continue as is."
But does that mean the club will continue to function with NEG as the lessee? Definitely perhaps.
"There's been a lot of interest…
Source: sevendaysvt.com