Investor buys Springfield's Odd Fellows block

A California investor has bought the vacant Odd Fellows block in downtown Springfield.
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20150411/NEWS02/704119921

Investor buys Springfield’s Odd Fellows block By Susan Smallheer Staff Writer | April 11,2015 Photo by Len Emery The Odd Fellows Building on Main Street in Springfield now has a new owner. SPRINGFIELD — The 1889 Odd Fellows Block on Main Street has been sold to a California real estate investor, who said Friday he has ambitious plans for the vacant block. The building, which has lacked tenants for about five years, was sold to DAL Advisors of Hollywood, Calif., late last month for a modest $20,000. The principal of DAL, Darrell A. Lee, said he liked Springfield so much he was in the process of buying a home in the town as well to oversee the renovations to the downtown block. Lee purchased the block from the local Independent Order of Odd Fellows, or IOOF, chapter. Lee, a real estate investor, said he had done extensive research looking for states and communities in other parts of the country where the real estate boom had not yet struck. He said the real estate boom has hit California once again, with property values “skyrocketing” in the past couple of years. Lee said his first plan was to live on the building’s top floor, but he said he now was buying a home north of the center of town. He said some of the ideas he has are to bring a restaurant or café to one of the vacant store fronts, and put housing on the upper two floors. But he stressed his plans were far from definite, and he is evaluating several different options. “A lot of work needs to be done. I have to upgrade all the windows and dual pane glass, and a lot of painting needs to be done. My plans are still in the very early stages,” he said. He said in a telephone interview that he had just returned to California after eight days in Springfield. He said he had made the Hartness House Inn his home base as he is researching other purchases, and he praised the friendliness of the people he has met in Springfield. “There’s a lot I have to research,” said Lee, who added he used to be a real estate broker with 50 agents and two mortgage companies, but he closed those businesses in the mid-1990s. “I’ve basically been retired all these years, and late last year I decided I should go back to work,” he said. Lee praised the work of Carol Lighthall of Springfield On The Move and her dedication to revitalizing downtown, as well as her work on the Odd Fellows building. In 2013, Lighthall worked with Vermont prison officials to have prison work crews paint the building a distinctive pattern of various shades of green with burgundy accents. Lee said he had met with Town Manager Tom Yennerell, and he said Yennerell was supportive and “pro-business.” Yennerell said he met Lee about a month ago at a meeting at the SOM offices. Yennerell said Lee is looking at other property in Springfield. “He’s thinking about retail on one side and a restaurant on the other,” he said of the two street-level spaces. “To me, it looked like a good investment,” Lee said. “It’s definitely a challenge.”