TRR photo by Tom Kane Nick and Laura Santana inspect the renovations on Main Street. (Click for larger image)

Couple has high hopes for Kelly’s

By TOM KANE

NARROWSBURG, NY — A Long Island couple, owners of the Manhattan-based Westside Autobody repair company, have purchased the former Kelly’s Adult Home on Main Street.

The purchase includes the building next door, formerly called the Lion’s Den.

Each of the three floors of the Kelly building covers 2,400 square feet and the Lion’s Den is 3,500 square feet.

The Main Street property, which was owned by Betty Kelly of Narrowsburg, has been empty for five years.

Nick and Laura Santana of Woodbury, NY, purchased property in Weiden Estates two years ago and have built a home there.

“We have plans for a restaurant on the second floor of the main building with retail shops on the first floor,” Laura said. The Lion’s Den will also be given over to retail or, if need be, office space, she said.

The third floor of the main building could be used for guest housing or office space, she said.

“It depends on whether the town will allow housing on the third floor,” Laura said.

“There seem to be very few places where visitors can stay overnight around here,” Nick said. “We see it as a real need in the area.”

“It’s possible that we could build another floor over the Lion’s Den,” Nick said. “It depends on need. We would build according to a tenant’s specifications. Since Narrowsburg has a high speed DSL broadband connection to the Internet, people wanting office space could be attracted by that.”

The entire renovation project would take about a year, Laura said.

The couple, who have five young sons, intends to move their family from Long Island and live in Narrowsburg full time.

“Long Island is over-populated, over-priced and over-rated,” Nick said.

“We love it here and we love the people,” Laura said.

Another of the factors drawing them to Narrowsburg was the new high school that will be opened in Lake Huntington this fall.

“We want the best education for our boys and this new school should be the best,” she said.

According to several older town residents, the three story, corner building housed apartments on the second and third floors from the 30s through the 50s. The first floor had several stores over the years until the family of Fred Tegeler, who was supervisor of Tusten in 1990 and 1992, opened a department store on the first floor.

In 1963, Art and Beth Peck purchased the building and the present DVAA building for a grocery store, and in 1965, they built the one-story building between the two buildings. In 1975, the Pecks sold the corner building and the one-floor building to Eugene and Betty Kelly.

“Anyone interested in renting the space here should contact us,” Laura said.

The Santanas can be reached at 212/974-3292.