GREENFIELD — Despite having recently received a notice to vacate her location at the site of the former Wilson’s Department Store, Cleary Jewelers owner Kerry Semaski maintains that her business will stay where it is until her lease expires in 2029.
“We are continuing to stay open where we are,” Semaski said. “We will be Cleary Jewelers for another 100 years.”
Cleary Jewelers has been in business at its 248 Main St. location since it first opened in 1928. Although it is currently operating under a lease that is set to expire in July 2029, MassDevelopment acquired the property in 2022 with plans to expand and relocate Green Fields Market into the building’s first floor, turning the upper floors into 65 mixed-income rental apartments.
On July 24, the property management company TCB Putnam LLC sent Semaski a written letter requiring her and her business to permanently vacate the building by Aug. 23. The letter offered financial support for the move. The business has received similar letters in the past, on April 25 and June 24, requiring that the business vacate the premises within 120 and 60 days, respectively.
“Since your business is being displaced in connection with this federally funded project, you will be eligible for relocation assistance under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act (URA),” wrote Andrew Waxman, representing TCB Putnam LLC. “As more fully set forth in the notices, we are ready to assist you in your move and help ensure that you preserve your eligibility for all relocation payments to which you may be entitled.”
In response to the notice, Dennis Egan Jr., an attorney hired by Semaski, wrote in a statement to the Greenfield Recorder that the business will stay until its lease expires at the end of July 2029.
However, Egan explained that should Cleary Jewelers be offered fair compensation for the move, the business is willing to terminate its lease early.
“Cleary Jewelers continues and will continue to occupy its store space pursuant to a value lease, the term of which continues through July 31, 2029,” Egan wrote. “We are aware of the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency’s desire to redevelop the property and continue to be willing to find a reasonable resolution that provides the community with much-needed housing while providing fair compensation to Cleary’s for early termination of its lease and the significant costs associated with its potential relocation.”
In a newsletter from the Franklin Community Co-op, which operates Green Fields Market, the organization claims that it and its partners plan to make “significant repairs” to the ground-floor space to accommodate the project.
Cleary Jewelers is the last remaining business on the ground floor of the former Wilson’s building. The Hens & Chicks consignment shop relocated to 208 Main St. after negotiations with MassDevelopment and the Lucky Bird thrift store closed at the end of 2023.
“As a caring member of the downtown business community, the co-op is very supportive of all efforts to work with Cleary’s and help this important business to relocate successfully, just as Hens & Chicks has into their lovely new location,” the Franklin Community Co-op wrote. “There have been multiple communications with Cleary’s on this point, but unfortunately, Cleary’s has yet to confirm that it will comply with the vacate date. While we remain hopeful that the status of the lease will be resolved amicably, because a settlement agreement has not been reached, MassDevelopment has now provided an additional notice to Cleary’s that they must vacate the premises by Aug. 23.”