MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – A classic dive bar in Montpelier has reopened its doors again, undaunted by fire, floods, and a global pandemic. Charlie-O’s, which bills itself as “a dive bar for nice people” is back. But the reopening comes at a challenging time for local businesses, raising questions about the health of the Capital City’s downtown.
It was a reunion of sorts on Thursday afternoon. “We knew people loved this place but we didn’t know how much until this happened,” said Brandy Bushey, the manager of Charlie-O’s on Main Street.
The iconic watering hole took a one-two punch last year. Three weeks after reopening from devastating flooding in July, a fire next door at the Mad Taco in October shuttered the bar for months.
But Thursday afternoon, decades of memories were once again back up on the walls and taps were flowing once again. “It’s so exciting to be able to say today is the day, we are reopening,” Bushey said.
Outside on the streets, businesses are buzzing with the lunchtime crowd, including at Positive Pie, which also recently re-opened after taking on a half-million dollar loan.
But owner Carlo Rovetto remains cautious. “It’s just a nerve-wracking feeling being in town, especially with that heavy debt. If another flood comes through and takes the restaurant out again, I’m done,” he said.
Business leaders see red flags on the horizon for the lifeblood of the Capital City. Central Vermont business owners owe a collective $143 million in debt.
“Montpelier is not ripe and ready for easy money-making right now. It’s still really challenging for people to come back from the flood,” said Melissa Boundy with the Central Vermont Economic Development Corporation. She says debt, high-interest loans, and bureaucratic red tape put the business community’s future in question.
Some businesses are also starved for foot traffic after the pandemic drove state employees and other office workers to remote work. About half of the state’s roughly 8,000 executive branch employees have some kind of remote work arrangement, and over half of them work in Washington County.
Vermont lawmakers have passed bills providing relief for governments and new regulations to make communities more resilient. “Everybody in our community is still dealing with the trauma from this flood and we’ve still got a ways to go to get back on our feet,” said Rep. Connor Casey, D-Montpelier.
Back at Charlie-O’s, Bushey is relieved to have another piece of Montpelier’s mosaic of local businesses back in action. People here are amazing. The space and the history are really important to us,” she said.
With just days left in the session, Rep. Casey is confident the state budget will include relief for businesses, but he says that is just scratching the surface for need.