Palouse building owners ponder what happened

Garth Meyer, Gazette Reporter | Apr 16, 20140

In September of last year, Adam and Olivia Barron of Palouse bought the two-story 1889 building that housed the former Palouse Tavern.

Initially, their plan was only to renovate the upper floor apartments. Later their focus changed toward the bar and restaurant downstairs.

By December, the Palouse Tavern was no longer and the Barrons began work to remodel and reopen a new bar and restaurant in the space.

“Every bit of money we had went into that,” said Adam Barron, standing in front of his house on 11 acres of land south of Palouse Monday.

“Well, not every bit. All of our savings went into that,” he said, adding that he and Olivia had borrowed money from people to get it open. “I think (we were) gonna do very well on it.”

Barron indicated that the idea of running a restaurant first came to the couple after they bought the building and Adam began basic work on it, such as replacing windows.

There were concerns inside the tavern as well, which was run by Bob and Tina Brookshier.

“The tavern was in such horrible condition, it was a lawsuit waiting to happen,” Barron said. “Bob was not willing to work with me, that’s why I evicted Bob… There was no ventilation system above the deep fryer whatsoever.”

Once the Brookshiers announced the Palouse Tavern would close Dec. 21, the Barrons heard from the townspeople.

“People were mad that we took the bar and grill out, so we said, let’s put it back in,” he said.

Starting in Palouse

Barron and Olivia moved to Palouse from Orofino, Idaho where he worked as a general contractor. In Palouse in 2011 Adam was hired as the Maintenance Supervisor at Palouse Elementary/Gar-Pal High School before starting Palouse Drain and Plumbing after one year at the school.

He and Olivia also flipped houses.

“The last couple houses we did didn’t make a profit,” he said.

The Barrons first got interested in the old corner building as a project to remodel and rent the apartments above the former Palouse Tavern.

“My plan was to make the building my career, basically,” Barron said.

They would rent the four apartments upstairs and he and Olivia would run the bar and restaurant, both taking three days per week and having an employee in charge on Sundays.

Last fall, Adam sold Palouse Drain to Unlimited Heating and Air in Potlatch.

“By selling the business, I could put all my time and effort into the building,” he said. “It was the best work I’ve ever done. We did it nice and we did it right.”

They had never run a restaurant before.

“It was a huge jump to go from plumbing to running a restaurant, but I’m up for anything, basically,” he said.

On the first night in operation, April 7, in what was supposed to be a soft opening for family and friends, the “Open” sign got flipped on in the window and a crowd packed inside.

In turn, they ran out of hamburgers. Barron planned to go to WinCo Foods in Moscow first thing the next morning to get more.

Instead, his phone rang at 3:58 a.m. It was the Palouse Police Chief telling him he better get to town, his bar was on fire.

Barron said he learned about running a restaurant from his sister in Medford, Ore., who has a background in the industry. Keith Rawles, Food Services of America representative from Garfield, which was to be the restaurant’s food supplier, and from various other advisors.

The Barrons hired about 10 cooks and servers.

The plan now

Adam Barron marvels at the damage the fire caused.

“We had huge commercial freezers and they’re gone,” he said. “It’s like they never existed.”

While he and Olivia wait for word from their insurance company, Adam got a new job on Monday.

“As of today, I’m going to work as a plumber,” he said, citing that he just got hired by Ken Paulson Plumbing. He called that morning to ask if they had any openings and went for an interview early that afternoon.

Meanwhile, the Barrons’ former venture is now a fenced-in lot of rubble on Main Street.

“As long as the insurance company pays enough to rebuild, we will rebuild,” Barron said.

He was told by his representative to expect a decision in four to six months.

Overall, the loss of the building has been felt through Palouse and beyond.

“Not only did we lose a business but we lost another piece of our historic downtown,” said Mike Milano, member of the Palouse Chamber of Commerce.

He suggested that the reversal of fortune for the downtown was stark.

“For someone to make that type of investment of time and money into a small downtown is pretty exciting,” he said.

If something is rebuilt, Milano said he hopes for the best.

“Architecture that fits the downtown would be ideal,” said Milano, noting that so many factors go into whether that would be possible.

“We will make (rebuilding) happen,” said Olivia. “We will make sure they get a building back…That’s been one of our dreams, to remodel a historical building.”

While the Brick Wall Bar and Restaurant is gone, so are the jobs of the newly-formed staff.

Waitress Daquarii Rock of Pullman said that Olivia had forwarded open job information to her.

“They’re being super kind and loving and generous toward the people that have lost their jobs. Even though they’re dilemma is way worse,” she said.

Overall, the Barrons said they have received much support.

“We can’t write enough thank you cards,” Adam said. “We will rebuild back.”

Attempts to reach Bob and Tina Brookshier for this article were unsuccessful.