KEEPING THE GREEN STREET CAFE ALIVE

Keeping the Green Street Cafe alive
By Daily Hampshire Gazette
Created 02/16/2009 - 10:28

Becoming a cultural fixture in a community as rich in culture as Northampton is something to be proud of. It's been our life pursuit to create a place that matters and to provide an experience that people remember. And it's been an honor to serve every patron that has walked through the doors of our establishment - Green Street Cafe - since we first opened in 1990.
We have every intention of continuing to serve those patrons for many years to come. But the future of Green Street Cafe is being placed in jeopardy by a much larger and more powerful cultural institution: Smith College.
For many years, Green Street Cafe - located on the grounds of Smith - operated in a healthy partnership with the college. We developed a good business from students, faculty and staff while providing them a high-quality option for meals in a convenient location.
In addition, as our reputation grew and the creative menu and good service at Green Street Cafe became more established, we earned national recognition in publications such as Gourmet Magazine, Bon Appetit, Yankee Magazine and The New York Times. In our admittedly tiny corner of the Smith universe, we like to think we have overachieved in bringing positive attention to the campus.
Unfortunately, our contribution to the Smith College community has been received with something less than gratitude. In fact, it appears the very college with which we have worked hard to build a lasting relationship is bent on divorcing itself from Green Street Cafe - with little regard for the impact on Northampton's cultural identity, or the devastating consequences for two small business owners.
In 2004, Smith College said they would have to relocate Green Street Cafe. That same year, the college ceased doing business with the restaurant - putting an end to our work providing catered meals for college functions, hosting private parties and dinner engagements.
Two years later, Smith offered us $65,000 to relocate Green Street Cafe - far below the true moving costs of about $300,000. In 2007, as work began on the college's $100 million Ford Hall building, we were forced to close because Smith College had been lax in keeping the cafe's building up to code. The financial damage was irrevocable. And it would only be through the tremendous goodwill of our patrons, vendors and community supporters that we reopened. Loyal diners purchased $12,000 worth of pre-paid dinners. Our plumber advanced us $8,000 worth of materials and labor, while our restaurant supply house advanced us credit to replace deteriorating equipment. Our food suppliers were equally generous. Even the IRS and Massachusetts Department of Revenue were accommodating to our efforts to get back up and running.
Over the past 24 months, however, Smith College has forced us to accept a "take it or leave it" offer of $50,000 for relocation and mitigation, while so far reneging on a pledge to make repairs to our building. The amount of personal savings we have liquidated and debt we have taken on is crushing. And the terms of our lease - through 2012 - do not allow any hope for paying down those obligations.
Most recently, Smith College has tried to force us to sign agreements to turn over our 16 parking spaces and an outdoor garden dining area for the entrance to the Ford Hall project. Smith President Carol Christ has publicly promised to keep us whole, but the actions of the college tell a different story.
Indeed, it appears that the Green Street Cafe - for so long an important fixture of the Northampton dining and cultural scene - faces death from a thousand cuts by Smith College.
But this doesn't have to happen. Not if the community feels Green Street Cafe is important enough to be allowed to survive.
The issues we have with Smith can be worked out. It just requires the willingness of the college to share responsibility for resolving them.
John Sielski and James Dozmati are the owners of Green Street Cafe.
Daily Hampshire Gazette © 2008 All rights reserved