Sports, social club proposed for West End
Madaket property is under agreement
BY MARY LANCASTER INDEPENDENT WRITER
Jamie Feeley, a partner in Cottage and Castle, Inc., wants to buy the West End restaurant from Ande Grennan and turn the building into a social club with a sports outfitting service for members.

ROB BENCHLEY/The Independent file The Madaket landmark appears to be on the verge of yet another transformation.

"Everything right now is conceptual. We're at the very early stages," Feeley said yesterday, confirming that he has signed a purchase and sales agreement and hopes to know in a few weeks whether the project is worth pursuing. "Right now we're doing market research and getting the tone of the neighbors."

At this phase, Feeley envisions the club as hav- ing locker rooms; perhaps a steam room or sauna; flats boats for fly fishing (possibly purchased from Madaket Marine and kept in its marina slips); equipment available for hunting, fishing or clamming; possibly a game room with card tables; a one or two lane bowling alley; a modest grille room and a bar.

"I applaud the idea," said Grennan. "That's what I was initially interested in doing when I bought it, but I think Jamie and his team would do a good job. Madaket seems cold on the idea of having a restaurant and maybe that would be a better use for it. I'm happy to see it continue as a commercial property if it's done the right way."

Feeley said he would like to offer the first round of memberships to local men and women at a preferred rate, but without yet knowing what his costs will be he cannot speculate on membership fees.

"Things are changing as we have conversations. There's a lot of uncovered rocks at this point," he said, explaining that besides discussing the idea with members of the Madaket Conservation Association he has had informal conversations with fishermen and others but has nothing definitive to submit to town permitting boards. "The feedback is that [a club] would have less impact [on the area] than a restaurant," he added. "We are in an exploratory period right now, but it seems there is a market for it and it's a perfect location."

Feeley anticipates that the club would close for two months or so in the winter to give its staff a break and conduct maintenance. Though club ownership would likely be a partnership arrangement, the details of that are not finalized.

Grennan purchased the 326 Madaket Road business, formerly called The Westender, from Matthew Bell for $1.44 million. Full of enthusiasm, he set out to recapture the casual, reasonably priced restaurant he remembered from many years in the past.

But a series of things - Grennan's move to Washington, D.C., unforeseen issues with service and inconsistent weather that affected patronage, among others - led him to decide to either sell the building or lease the business.

Grennan, who also owns Sperry Tents of Nantucket, spent most of the first summer he owned the West End on the island with his wife and young son. By taking down walls and moving in comfortable woven straw furniture, he eliminated the formal dining feel and created an atmosphere inspiring people to sit back and enjoy Madaket's unparalled sunsets.

"That was really rewarding that first summer," he recalled.

However, it was not as easy as he anticipated to draw back customers. Some stopped eating there when, during its last incarnation, the original ice cream stand and gas station turned into retail stores and then a burger and fries take-out, became more upscale with a pricey menu.

He also found it was somewhat difficult logistically to serve 89 people on the second floor with just a single stairway for wait staff trying to bustle between the kitchen and diners. Further, Grennan discovered that on sunny days when he was fully staffed, few preferred an eatery to the outdoors, yet on rainy days he and his crew were swamped with business.

On top of all that, Sperry Tents were in high demand from June through August. That was fine, and he was experienced in the field, but it meant the hours he could contribute to overseeing the West End had to suffer.

"It needs someone devoted to it all the time in the busy season," he explained. "If it was a mom and pop business you could probably be more clever in running it, but it is a very short season and the people running it have to keep that in mind."

The building was recently advertised through Great Point Properties at $2,850,000. Beyond the views, it has high, beamed ceilings upstairs with many skylights and raised hearth fireplaces on both the second story

and on the first floor. I