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Vale Rio Diner for sale on ebay

From Philly.com:
The Vale-Rio Diner, the Phoenixville landmark where regulars came for coffee, pie, and conversation for 60 years, has been put up for auction on eBay.

The "Val," as it was known, was posted online July 12 at an asking price of $250,000, co-owner Francis J. Puleo said Sunday.

Puleo said he and his brother Richard J. Puleo wrestled with what to do with the diner before reluctantly agreeing to the move last week.

"It was a very emotional decision," said Francis Puleo, who reported that he had already received a few nibbles from potential buyers.

The classic 1948 diner closed in February 2008 and was moved from its longtime spot at Nutt Road and Bridge Street to make way for a Walgreens drugstore and a Starbucks coffee shop.

The Puleos had hoped to reopen the diner on land they own in Phoenixville, but labored against objections from three neighbors and the failure of local planners to grant the required zoning variance.

Have an extra $225k lying around? Visit the ebay site and make a bid.

Comments

Anonymous said…
is there going to be a starbucks at the old fountain?
Anonymous said…
$225K? LOL! He'll never get anything near that amount for it, especially now that it has been sitting over a year. Not to mention the moving costs.

I predict it sells to some out of town collector for 80K or so.
Anonymous said…
"is there going to be a starbucks at the old fountain?"

To my knowledge, Starbucks pulled out of the deal to locate there shortly after it was announced they were going to. They were closing under performing sites at the same time and opening a new store just wasn't in the cards. So to answer your question.....no.
JW said…
This is correct. However, Councilman Handwerk posted on his site that a resolution was passed to allow for expansion of the building which presumably means the owner has someone in mind for the space.

http://www.michaelhandwerk.com/2010/07/recap-of-borough-council-meeting-of.html
Anonymous said…
The video of the Council meeting shows it will be a Pat's Pizza Family Restaurant. They have 52 locations spread throughout PA, DE, NJ and MD.
JW said…
Thx Anonymous. Here is a link to their site

http://www.patsfamilyrestaurant.com/
Anonymous said…
Wow, just what we need in this town... more pizza.
Anonymous said…
I think I am gonna open a Jenny Craig Clinic..... All this Pizza will make me money in the future.
JW said…
To be fair, a look at their website seems to indicate that they offer a lot more than your typical pizza place.
Anonymous said…
Did Bookend Cafe go out of business? I tried to call and place an order on Saturday, and both of their numbers were disconnected.
JW said…
yes, it closed at the beginning of the month
Anonymous said…
Pat's has pretty good food, but even so, gotta agree about the pizza overload.
Anonymous said…
I've been to a couple Pat's Pizza locations and they are nicer than a typical pizza joint. Good food, better setting, for pizzeria-like prices. Can't beat that. This likely explains why they've done so well and have 55 locations. In either event, I'm glad someone was willing to invest in the Fountain Inn and make this building prettier than it's ever been.

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