Charred former biker clubhouse likely to be torn down

The former biker clubhouse on Perry St. gutted by fire two weeks ago is likely to be torn down soon, says the realtor who had just sold the house.

Patrick Mahoney, an agent with Re/Max, said the real estate deal was a week away from closing when the house burned.

Mahoney said he expected demolition to begin on Wednesday, but the work didn’t get started – perhaps due to rain.

City police said they are investigating for arson. Nobody was hurt in the fire, which broke out shortly after 12:20 a.m. March 25.

Two days after the fire, the city issued an unsafe building order on the house at 285 Perry St.

The order states that the owner – Nancy Foote of Campbellford – had until Wednesday to either being rebuilding or demolishing the house.

Nancy Foote is the common-law spouse of long-time Peterborough biker Bob Pammett, who had set up a Vagos biker gang chapter at the clubhouse several years ago.

The unsafe building order also states that the house has extensive fire damage to the masonry chimney and to the structural wood framing.

There is extensive water damage too, the order says, which makes the house uninhabitable.

Although the house had a buyer and the conditions of sale had been lifted - the deal hadn’t closed yet when the fire broke out.

It was unclear to Mahoney on Thursday what will happen now: If insurance covers the cost of rebuilding, then perhaps the buyer will follow through with the sale. If not, the seller is stuck with a property worth half the original price.

The insurance company isn’t expected to decide on the matter until late April, he said.

The Vagos chapter patched over to the Outlaws in 2015. An Outlaws club sign was posted on the side of the clubhouse last year before the property went up for sale.