It may take another two months or so to finish repairs to Novak’s, the famous Hungarian restaurant in downtown Albany that was damaged by fire and smoke on Feb. 27.
How long before they reopen? That was the question put to me a couple of days ago. On Wednesday I talked to Karen Novak, a principal in the family enterprise.
The structural damage caused by the basement fire has been repaired, and the main issue now is the lingering smell of the thick smoke that permeated everything in the building, including the insulation in the ceiling and the bricks in the walls.
Pretty much everything has to be replaced or cleaned, and obviously this is no small thing. Things are looking up. The smell is a lot less now, Karen told me, but it has to be completely gone.
So when can we look forward to one of Novak’s trademark dishes? Karen Novak’s prediction: “Late July or August.” (hh)
Did CARA require the family to carry a fire policy that pays for the entire replacement cost of this “famous” restaurant?
Otherwise, some or all of CARA’s $200,000 “investment” may have gone up in smoke.
I believe it has been five years so the “loan” was probably forgiven.
Do you have details?
This uncomfortable turn of events could be viewed as a new business opportunity for ARA/CARA – namely to get into the insurance business. Once an ARA/CARA “grant” or some other financial arrangement has been made, ARA/CARA could require all borrowers to insure their businesses with ARA/CARA policies naming ARA/CARA as sole beneficiary, and require mandatory, intrusive inspections by ARA/CARA approved inspection teams, charging for the services. The myriad fees that could be extracted are limited only by ARA/CARA imagination.
I was informed by Matilda the younger that Novak’s did indeed have insurance.