Natural History Wanderings

From Pt. Reyes Station House:

Dear Friends near and far –

Today we have an announcement to make that is harder than you can imagine.

After nearly a month of diligence, Station House Cafe secured disaster relief funding through the first round of the federal Paycheck Protection Program (P.P.P.) and we were able to bring back much of our workforce- this was cause for celebration and our future looked a little brighter.

We HAD this. The funding was designed to help businesses sustain the loss of imposed restrictions during shelter-in-place orders and it would have successfully done so but another factor was introduced that changed the course of survival for Station House Cafe.

Our lease was due to renew on June 1. The proposal received by our landlord would have raised our rent more than 300% from $8372 per month to $28,000 per month, under the current lease, with no option to renew after one year. The landlord also offered an alternative lease, with new, restrictive and onerous conditions, that would extend the term to four years at $21,000 per month.

Under the best of economic conditions, the Station House Cafe could not have sustained such an increase. In our current economic crisis, it is unfathomable.

After 46 years in Point Reyes Station, and 15 years under current ownership, Station House Cafe will be closing permanently on June 1, 2020.

Throughout this month, we will be open for take-out Thursday through Monday and local delivery on Saturdays and Sundays. Our hours of operation are 11am-7pm; closed Tuesday-Wednesday.

We are open to finding a new location and hope that we can all be together again one day soon.

It’s such an awkward time to say good-bye. No parties, no social gatherings, nothing we know as “normal” in the hospitality world is possible at this time.

And to you, the reader, our patrons, we owe so much gratitude. Thank you for the years of laughter, kind words, celebrations and continued support. We are so fortunate to have prospered for so long in this beautiful community of West Marin.

Stay safe and be well.