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Date: 4/12/2022
AMHERST – The building owner of 37. N Pleasant St. and 45 Boltwood Walk, McMurphy’s and Mass Vintage respectively, has submitted a new demolition permit application after an identical application that was approved last year expired due to complications from COVID-19.
The Amherst Historical Commission (AHC) will now have another hearing on April 20 to re-approve the permit. Property owner Barry Roberts said that demolition doesn’t necessarily mean that students and residents would permanently lose one of their beloved bars and clothing stores. Roberts said he expects the new building will have an opportunity for both to reopen, as it will be a mixed-use building with residential, retail and restaurant spaces.
“I just think the building is functionally obsolescent and it’s time to get a new building there,” Roberts said at last year’s AHC hearing. The main building to be demolished at 37 N Pleasant St. includes Amherst Typewriter and Computer and a vacant second floor that was most recently used by the Boys and Girls Club. The property card estimates the building to be from 1900, but records from the Jones Library and Sanborn fire maps show the building standing as early as 1890 as a bakery. Over the years, the structure served Amherst as a restaurant, tin shop, shoe repair store, and more.
During the hearing last year, Meg Gage spoke about her hopes for future plans as a longtime Amherst resident.
“I’m not opposed to this demolition at all, I have confidence in Barry’s judgment,” Gage said. “It’s clearly pretty run-down but Amherst Typewriter is one of the very few businesses in town owned by an African-American and I hope we’re going to find ways down the road to empower people of color in businesses in our downtown.”
Roberts said that the building is showing signs of foundation weakness over the years, causing the wall to bow out and the roof rafters to sag. He added the foundation is a mishmash of cinderblocks and stone, not a sturdy foundation of poured concrete.
The 6,240-square-foot structure is estimated to take two months to demolish and has a price tag of $135,000. If approved again, the estimated start date is slated for June 1, 2023.