This was from the poughkeepsie journal on sunday april 20th 2008. Due to my attourney basically telling me to watch what I say I really can’t say a whole lot…but… In hind sight would have done things different, would have done things without partners, would have trusted no one but my wife, would have not tried to please other people, would have not placed my life in someone elses hands, would have lived life my way not listening to others. Anyways I sure as hell hope that there is a thing as Karma and I hope that my friends and family, the people that really matter can see through the bs and see me for what I am………
A popular lunch spot in the center of Dutchess County remains closed after its former owners were granted bankruptcy protection in mid-March, leaving a long trail of unpaid business debts, theft accusations and a botched restaurant business partnership behind them.
The Mabbettsville Market, a gourmet grocery store with a deli and catering component, at 3809 Route 44 in the Town of Washington, was closed at the end of 2006, and its former owners, husband and wife Ty and Marian Bittner, are living in another state.
U.S. Bankruptcy Court documents reveal the Bittners owed about $1.7 million to creditors, the state and federal government, etc., and had no assets to pay off any of their debts. The Bittners’ debts were primarily business-related.
The documents include the names of 89 creditors, some of which are the Bank of Millbrook, Central Hudson, Bread Alone, Chazen Engineering, Crowley Foods, Gillette Creamery in Ellenville, Red Barn produce in Pine Plains, Village Animal Hospital in Millbrook and Welsh Sanitation Services in Hopewell Junction.
The Bittners declined to comment.
While the bankruptcy has been settled, the future of the market has yet to be determined. The market property was sold on Dec. 26, 2006, to L. Associates LLC for $450,000, according to the deed, obtained at the Dutchess County Clerk’s office. The New York Department of State corporation database and the Town of Washington tax collector, Mary Alex, list Verbank resident Russell Saracheck as the contact for the property.
Saracheck did not return phone calls and it is unclear what will happen to the property.
Wayne Nussbickel of Millbrook described the 8-year-old market as “a charming place that enhanced the Mabbettsville area.”
“They had good food and a nice atmosphere – a real charming country feeling that attracted the weekenders,” said Nussbickel, president of N&S Supply Co. “It was a place where you could get a crock of soup or a sandwich on homemade bread.”
Marella Consolini, a regular weekend customer, remembers when the market first closed.
“You could peer inside and see that everything was still in its place, the stack of magazines still by the cash register … as if it were very early and they just hadn’t filled the cases with fresh food and opened the doors yet,” Consolini wrote in an e-mail. “Then brown paper went up over that window and that was it. For a while there was a rope across the driveway so you couldn’t drive in, then that came down, and for ages there’s been a light on on the second floor, just burning but no sign of life.”
Chapter 7 bankruptcy documents were filed on Aug. 28 in the eastern district of Norfolk, Va., to dismiss the Bittners’ debts. They reveal the Bittners live and work in Virginia Beach, Va. Ty Bittner is listed as a restaurant manager for TGI Friday’s and his wife is listed as a chef at Bella Monte restaurant.
The court-appointed bankruptcy trustee, Tom Smith Jr., stated in the bankruptcy report on Feb. 18 the Bittners had no assets to pay off their debts.
Complaint is filed
Ty Bittner’s former business partner in a Pleasant Valley restaurant, La Puerta Azul, filed a complaint Nov. 30, asking the court to deny Ty Bittner’s chapter 7 status. The partner, Millbrook resident Brad Reifler, accused Bittner of stealing money from him, lying about his assets and mismanaging his business finances.
In an e-mail to the Journal, Reifler said Bittner pledged the assets of the market in return for a loan, when in fact the market was under financial duress.
Reifler also alleged in the complaint that Bittner took $150,000 of the $1.2 million Reifler invested in La Puerta Azul restaurant without his consent to pay off the debts of The Mabbettsville Market.
“It was discovered through my auditor that Ty had stolen money during the construction phase of LPA (La Puerta Azul) and he and his wife were fired shortly after opening,” Reifler wrote.
Reifler agreed to settle his bankruptcy complaint against Bittner on Feb. 29 on the condition Bittner must pay Reifler $30,000 – $2,300 up front and $300 per month. Bittner was ordered by the judge to convey his business interest in La Puerta Azul to Reifler.
In an e-mail, Bittner declined to comment on Reifler’s accusations, adding that the issue has been settled.
The Bittners were discharged from their other debts on Feb. 19 and both the bankruptcy and Reifler’s complaint were closed on March 14.
“I will never receive what I am owed and decided to accept his settlement offer,” Reifler wrote. Reifler is listed as chairman and chief executive of Pali Capital Inc., a global financial services organization, on the company’s Web site.
In an e-mailed statement, Ty Bittner said:
“We decline to comment, as we are still very sad about leaving, except to say that the thing we miss most about The Mabbettsville Market are the people we came into contact with that supported us all those years.”
Reach Sarah Bradshaw at sbradshaw@poughkeepsiejournal.com or 845-437-4811.
