Car Barn owner still waiting for answers 6 months on

By Mark Ribble

WHEATLEY — On the evening of August 26, 2021, there were 14 diners and four staff enjoying dinner time at the Car Barn Restaurant in Wheatley.

Firefighters arrived to evacuate the building just before the explosion went off, sending customers and staff running out the front door onto Talbot Street.

Almost six months later, those meals and everything else inside the Car Barn still sit where they were when the explosion rocked the former Pogue Pub less than 30 feet away from the Car Barn’s back door.

For restaurant owner Barry Broadbent, the process of recovery has been a slow, but necessary one.

For someone used to working 12-hour days, seven days a week, Broadbent says his life has changed dramatically as he contemplates what the future will hold.

“The biggest frustration is, that without some sort of end date, we can’t sit down and make a plan to move forward,” he told the Sun last week. “It’s so discouraging for me.”

Broadbent is also discouraged by the pace at which things are getting done and the fact that his insurance adjuster has yet to access the building.

Barry Broadbent in front of the Car Barn Restaurant in June, 2021.

SUN photo

“I haven’t seen a nickel from the insurance companies,” he said.

His insurance company has also informed him that, as of February 27, he’ll no longer be insured.

“They basically said to find someone else,” he said.

The Car Barn sustained damage in the explosion that has yet to be assessed, and although he’s been able to gain access once for an hour, Broadbent used that time to collect his files, computers and point-of-sale equipment.

“The other equipment is all compromised,” he said. “Plus there’s a giant hole in the roof.”

He didn’t venture near the walk-in cooler, which has not had hydro since the moment of the blast.

“I have 2,500 pieces of chicken in that cooler,” he says. “It’s very bad.”

The Car Barn employed 14-16 people before COVID, and was operating with just over 10 employees during the pandemic, which was already causing issues for the bustling business.

“It was one thing to deal with COVID, but then we get this thing thrown at us on top of the plate, that’s a different story,” said Broadbent. “There has been a lot of hard work from a lot of people over the years.”

Broadbent says he understands that the experts are trying to come to a permanent solution rather than placing a band-aid on the problem, but it’s still frustrating to be no further ahead six months later.

But, he says, he feels fortunate compared to residents who are out of their homes. His home is not in the evacuation zone.

“These poor folks are out of their homes,” he says. “I’m fortunate in that I still have my home.”

As for the future of the Car Barn, Broadbent hopes to pick up some catering in the spring, but says the restaurant is in limbo until some answers are given.

“I don’t know if the building is structurally good and can’t make any plans until we know what we’re dealing with.” he said. “It will take months, even after they solve the gas issue.”

He’s looked into other locations and hasn’t been successful in finding anything suitable to open a restaurant in. “There are no buildings available in town,” he said.

That leaves the Car Barn Restaurant — a place that Barry Broadbent has operated for the last 34 years — out in the cold.

As winter turns to spring, he can only hope that decisions are made soon to allow him to make plans for the future.