Less than one year after an electrical fire devastated Chestnut Cottage Christmas shop on Genesee Street in downtown Skaneateles, the store has been renovated and has reopened for business.

“It was very good, very busy,” said owner Frank Cavaiolo of his opening day, Friday, Nov. 25. “We had a lot of good wishes from local people.”

Chestnut Cottage is a year-round Christmas and gift shop at 75 E. Genesee Street. They carry merchandise from companies such as Christopher Radko handmade glass ornaments, Crabtree & Evelyn, Caspari paper products and WoodWick candles.

Cavaiolo and his wife live on the second floor, and have lived in and run their business out of the building since 1987.

On the night of Feb. 13, 2011, an electrical fire started at one of the outlets on the first floor. Skaneateles and 11 other fire companies responded to the call, and had the blaze under control within 30 minutes, Skaneateles Fire Chief Eric Sell said at the time.

The building sustained fire damage on the first floor, where the gift shop is located, and smoke, water and heat damage to the second floor.

“It was devastation,” Cavaiolo said. “There was flames and smoke; the fire went up the back staircase; all the merchandise was destroyed.”

Luckily, the damage was mostly cosmetic and after the fire the building was determined to be structurally sound.

“The big, important factor to that was the fire departments: they saved it,” Cavaiolo said. “That’s what we’re thankful for; they did a wonderful job. And the police department. They were the first responders and they helped my wife out of the building.”

The Cavaiolos hired Lundblad Construction of Marietta to renovate the structure. They started work in July.

The wood-frame Federal style house, owned originally by the Waterbury Family, was built in 1816. All the original interior woodwork such as the fireplace mantles, ceiling ornamentation and hand-cut cornices had to be replicated and replaced, which the carpenter did based on old photographs.

“The big thing was the gothic windows in the front of the house,” Cavaiolo said. “They had to be replicated exactly because we are in the historic district. I would have done it anyway because these windows are a trademark of the house.”

The renovated Chestnut Cottage is basically the same as it was before the fire, with only some subtle changes to the cabinetry, Cavaiolo said. They also added 4,000 feet of new electrical wiring to the building to prevent any possible repeat of the February fire.

“So we are very, very safe, electrically speaking,” Cavaiolo said.

Although the Cavaiolos had no specific target date for their reopening, they were pleased it was on the Friday after Thanksgiving, which is the busiest shopping day of the entire year.

“We were anxious to get back, and we’re hoping for a decent season,” he said.

Sue Dove, executive director for the Skaneateles Area Chamber of Commerce, said it was exciting to see Chestnut Cottage back in business.

“We are thrilled that Frank decided to refurbish. I know the fire was devastating to the business and to him personally, but he really picked himself up and put a lot of effort into making it an even better place than it was before. Were happy to have them back online as a vibrant Skaneateles business,” Dove said.

Jason Emerson is editor of the Skaneateles Press. He can be reached at skaneatelespress.com.