Antioch Set to Approve Sale of Humphrey’s Building to Sean McCauley Investments

On Tuesday, the Antioch City Council will discuss the potential sale of the Humphrey’s building where it could potentially become the third location of Zephyr Grill and Bar.

The purchase and sale agreement is with Sean McCauley Investments, Inc. (SMI) for $1.2 million which the city said would eliminate operating/maintenance expenses of the Humphrey’s restaurant building by shifting that to the new owners.

SMI has also submitted a Letter of Intent with a restaurant operator for the site to bring it back to a working restaurant. The Letter of Intent is with Randy and Lynn Tei, DBA RLW Properties for the operation of a Zephyr Grill & Bar Restaurant.

RLW has over 30 years of experience in the restaurant industry. They currently own and operate two restaurants in the Bay Area, Zephyr Grill & Bar in Brentwood and Zephyr Grill & Bar in Livermore; Ca. RLW is committed to revitalizing the site and operating an Antioch City Council Report November 14, 2017 Agenda Item# 4 3 elegant upscale restaurant. SMI was instrumental in RLW’s decision to launch this endeavor in the Rivertown District of Antioch. This will be their 3rd location in the Bay Area. They look forward to operating this 3rd restaurant for many years to come in Downtown Rivertown Antioch.

According to the Staff Report, One Marina Plaza The City of Antioch owns One Marina Plaza adjacent to the Antioch Marina overlooking the beautiful San Joaquin River. This site was formerly known as Humphrey’s on the Delta restaurant. The 12,432 square foot restaurant operated for many years until the ownership defaulted; the City petitioned and acquired the site through a “quiet title” action in 2014. In August of 2014 the City put out a Request for Qualifications (RFQ), and received no responses to this solicitation. After the official solicitation ended staff made further efforts to market the site.

The following are actions that staff took to solicit interest:

• Created a marketing flyer for the site and posted on the City website.
• Uploaded flyer to International Council of Shopping Center’s (ICSC) website.
• Reached out to ICSC members who develop or own restaurants and franchises.
• Reached out to “destination” restaurants or other restaurant looking to expand.
• Held tours on site with restaurant owners and restaurant brokers.
• Held meetings with County Health & Environmental, Delta Diablo Sanitary, developers, & restaurant designers.
• Advertised the site with the San Francisco Chronicle.

Prior to the current SMI negotiations and PSA, staff negotiated with Dorothy Everett and John Jernigan DBA Everett and Jones Barbecue for 16 months. These negotiations did not result in a final agreement.

For the full agenda, click here.