The historic property at 105 First St. – once home to hugely successful restaurants such as Three Saints, Tutor’s and Fosters – was recently purchased by local businessman Mike Charles.
The place last operated as Plate which closed in 2009. The following year 105’s mortgage was purchased by First Bank of Houston, Texas. This past summer, Hunt Commercial Real Estate took over for the bank, asking $350,000. The “sold” sign went up on Dec. 23.
Realtor Dana Crocker said the closing was scheduled for late-January.
Charles owns several properties in the village business district including the one at 103 First St. which houses the CNY Yoga Center and the Entirely You homeopathy shop. He also owns Charles One Hour Heating & Air Conditioning Co. at 914 Old Liverpool Road, the same building that also houses Family Music Center.
Prime location for sale
I wonder if Mike might want to buy the old Burger King location at 7589 Oswego St. The fast food monarch closed its doors here on Dec. 27. If you want to scoop up this prime village location before someone else makes a purchase offer, give Sutton Real Estate a call at 424-1111.
Muffler shop makeover
Cole Muffler, at the corner of Oswego and North Willow streets, is undergoing a makeover of its longstanding brick façade and will be adding Mavis Discount Tire alongside its famous brake and muffler service.
Unforgettable fiddler
I’ll never forget the first time I caught fiddler Hal Casey up close and personal. It was summer 1974 at a parking-lot pickin’ session alongside a performers’ schoolbus-cum-tour bus at a bluegrass festival outside Hannibal. Hal wore his usual wide-brimmed hat with domed crown and a feather.
But he wasn’t playing his usual bluegrass. He was bowing the blues – deep, dark, blue notes so full of tone and feeling they quickly attracted a circle of awestruck listeners who surrounded the inner circle of four or five musicians.
A big-boned, beer-bellied white girl in OshKosh B’Gosh overalls faced Hal directly as she belted out the world-weary words, and Hal answered each moanin’ phrase with fiddle riffs that grew more ferocious as the tune unwound.
When it was over, the oversized singer threw her meaty arms around Hal’s neck and he smiled widely. The transfixed audience exploded with cheers and raised cans of Genny Cream. It was one of those rare musical moments, one for the memory banks.
Hal Casey was playin’ the blues!
Former state fiddle champion and Syracuse Area Music Awards Hall of Famer Hal Casey, who lived in North Syracuse, died Jan. 17, at age 83.
Chase away winter blues
One of my favorite singers from the Utica area, Julie Falatico, will wrap her honey-smooth voice around tunes from the Great American Songbook at noon on Sunday, Jan. 29, to open the January JazzFest at Mohegan Manor, 28 Oswego St. in Baldwinsville.
Later, at 2 and 4 p.m., the classy Manor will adopt a roadhouse ambiance when the Syracuse Bluesfest “SOS” Blues Band All-Stars crank out some boogie-woogie.
Over the course of the day, from noon to 9 p.m., many of the best jazz musicians and vocalists from CNY will be showcased at the mid-winter festival hosted by CNYJazz Central under the direction Larry Luttinger, who lives in Liverpool’s Sun Harbor neighborhood.
The fest features headliners saxophonist Chris Vadala and scat singer Nancy Kelly as well as Jeff Stockham & The Jazz Police, Grupo Pagan, the Bill Horrace Trio and the Liverpool-educated guitarist Tom Bronzetti.
Ticket prices for the January JazzFest range from $25 to $45; moheganmanor.com; 479-JAZZ.
