Two well known Napa Valley Commercial Landmarks will be sold at Napa County courthouse steps. The former Pometta’s Deli at the intersection og Highway 29 and Oakville Grade plus the former Red Hen on Highway 29 half way between Napa and Yountville will be sold at auction on October 6 th and this Wednesday respectively. Here is part of article from the yesterdays Napa Valley Register.
The grand plans of a developer for two Napa County commercial landmarks have collapsed, leaving the properties’ futures up for grabs. Kathy Smith made waves this past decade when she snapped up Pometta’s Deli on Oakville Grade and the original Red Hen complex on Solano Avenue north of Napa. At the Pometta’s site, Smith announced plans to build an upscale restaurant and deli to entice both locals and visitors. “I want to have a good place for people to have fun,” she said in 2005. At the 3.5-acre former Red Hen site, which once held a sprawling antique store, Smith envisioned a destination evoking Disneyland’s Main Street or a scene from the “Music Man.”
She floated plans for two restaurants, retail stores, a possible 50-room hotel, even a carousel. “I have a lot of dreams for it,” Smith said in a 2005 interview. Those dreams are now dashed. In an attempt to satisfy a civil court judgment against Smith, the former Pometta’s Deli lot will be sold at auction on the Napa County courthouse steps on Oct. 6. There is no minimum bid amount.
The former Red Hen site has entered foreclosure proceedings and is scheduled to be auctioned off Wednesday at the courthouse. There is no minimum bid amount. The default amount is listed as $4.1 million.
In addition, Smith has lost the Napa Smith Brewery property near the Napa County airport and is in the process of losing three Upvalley homes.
I can remember eating at the original Red Hen in the late seventies which served fried chicken in those red plastic baskets. It was very tasty and quite reasonable. As for Pometta’s Deli, it too was another favorite site for many locals. It is sad to see them end up this way. Maybe a sign of the times and maybe a sign of the down turn for commercial real estate I keep reading about?
Carmen Brodeur says
September 23, 2010 at 5:58 pmI went to the Red Hen as a child with my parents. It is now another place I won’t be able to take my own kids to because of developers greed.
Curtis Van Carter says
October 2, 2010 at 3:03 pmCarmen
Thanks for your comment. I too remember it fondly. It was even good when it was still the Red Hen but a Mexican restaurant. Though I only ate there twice, I never liked it when it became Zares.