Fire shuts Trout Club till summer
NEWARK, Ohio — The Trout Club likely will be closed until next summer after a fire over the weekend caused at least $400,000 in damage.
The fire at the popular restaurant, event space and golf course started early on Saturday in a garage area beneath the facility’s TC Lounge. It was a concrete area initially designed
to house golf carts, but recently was used for storing restaurant and golf-course supplies, said owner Brent Dewey.
The fire spread to the upstairs lounge, which houses an antique bar.
The fire was ruled accidental. No one was injured, but about a third of the building has significant fire damage, and the rest of it has smoke damage, said Newark Fire Chief Patrick Connor.
The fire comes on the heels of the club’s renovation. Dewey and his wife, Agata, purchased the property, which was once a hunting and fishing club, in August 2014. They recently finished about $2.3 million in renovations, including a new front porch, a remodeled interior and the addition of several villas for overnight guests. The club was really starting to increase its business, Dewey said.
“It was the hottest new place in town,” he said.
Connor estimated the damage to be between $350,000 and $400,000. Dewey said he expects it will be even more than that. The facility likely will be closed until June for repairs, he said.
The property is insured
Scheduled events at the facility have been canceled, including 33 holiday parties and an 85-person Thanksgiving meal.
against fire damage.
Scheduled events at the facility have been canceled, including 33 holiday parties and an 85-person Thanksgiving meal.
Dewey said he’s still trying to grasp what happened but added that he has received a lot of support since the fire from local officials and people reaching out to help relocate parties and events.
“It meant a lot to a lot of people in this community,” Dewey said.
There was a steady stream of cars pulling into the club’s parking lot on Monday as drivers took a look at the damage. A busload of residents from a nearby retirement community even stopped by to get a peek.
“(Dewey’s) got a following of people that truly love the renovation and just really came aboard and loved that,” said Newark Mayor Jeff Hall. “That’s showing how important that facility is in the community.”