West Marin fixture Station House Cafe to close - Marin Independent Journal

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After about 46 years of business, the Station House Cafe in Point Reyes Station is set to close on June 1.

“It’s just so hard to describe in a few words,” said cafe owner Sheryl Cahill, who began working at the cafe in 1990 before taking ownership in 2005. “It’s not just comfort food, but it’s a place where you can find comfort too, whether you’re alone or with a friend or a large group. It’s always been my intention that it be a warm, welcoming and easy environment to enjoy.”

The closure decision follows a proposed rent hike and weeks of lease negotiations. The lease, which began in 2005 and was extended in 2015, is set to expire at the end of the month. Cahill said the proposed rent would have been unmanageable.

“We could not meet in the middle,” Cahill said.

Kirsten Hural, owner of the property and stepdaughter of former cafe owner Pat Healy, said Tuesday that the current rent does not reflect the fair market value. She also said the circumstances — a lease expiring during an economic downturn caused by a global pandemic — were unexpected.

Both Cahill and Hural acknowledged that there were offers to reduce and defer rent payments during the downturn.

Hural said she remains “open to good faith negotiations of a new agreement.”

“Our attempted accommodations and short-term fixes, aimed at extending negotiations to a time when the market settles, have failed,” she wrote.

Before the pandemic, the cafe employed 44 full- and part-time workers. Seventeen were able to return after the cafe secured a federal Paycheck Protection Program loan, Cahill said.

Longtime resident Frank Borodic, who is also president of the West Marin Chamber of Commerce and proprietor of the Inn at Roundstone Farm, said the cafe has been a longtime local fixture. He said it is a business that people will be shocked to hear is closing.

“The previous owner and Sheryl were and are well-respected within the community and it has a lot of local support,” he said.

With Point Reyes Station businesses reliant on visitors as well as locals, having a variety of attractions is important, especially during the economic recovery. For instance, the cafe is the only restaurant in town to serve breakfast.

“A loss of one restaurant is very important for us coming out of this economic downtown due to COVID-19,” Borodic said. “It doesn’t bode well for whenever things do open up.”

In addition to serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, the cafe also hosted live music on Sundays, wedding receptions and other events.

“It’s a special gathering place,” Cahill said. “It feels to me and to many people who have expressed this sentiment to me is that it felt like more than a restaurant in a town. It’s a place where people meet and make lifetime connections.”

Cahill said two of the kitchen staffers have been at the restaurant since she started working there nearly 31 years ago. Some other employees have tenures of 15 to 25 years.

While Cahill said she is open to another location, she said her focus now is maintaining her other restaurant, Side Street Kitchen, during the pandemic.

Station House Cafe is still open for takeout orders until May 31.

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West Marin fixture Station House Cafe to close - Marin Independent Journal
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