ASHFIELD — In September, a group of residents thought they were going to buy the beloved town fixture, Elmer’s Store, from its owners and turn it into a community-oriented cooperative space. That was until the building faced foreclosure.

The building is now up for auction through Aaron Posnik & Co. The auction was initially scheduled for Friday on site, but has now been postponed until Thursday, Jan. 26. The winning bidder will need to pay a $15,000 deposit and close the sale within 30 days.

According to Corey Fisher, vice president of Aaron Posnik & Co., the auction was postponed because Greenfield Savings Bank, the holder of the mortgage, is hoping to work out a deal with the owners of Elmer’s Store.

The bank “doesn’t want to foreclose if they don’t have to. They are trying to work it out,” Fisher said.

Eight members of the local group attempting to buy the store and at least one contractor showed up hoping the auction would take place as scheduled on Friday morning.

Elmer’s Store at 396 Main St. has been in Ashfield since 1835. According to its website, Nan Parati, a member of the community group hoping to take over ownership of Elmer’s, moved to Ashfield after Hurricane Katrina and ran the business until 2018, at which time she sold it to husband and wife Florencia Ferrari Haines and Andreas Auer. The couple ran the business under the limited liability company Ashfield Holdings.

In 2022, the Elmer’s Revitalization Steering Committee began planning to purchase the business.

“There is a new owner and they have been running it differently. Lots of people in the community have been happy and some have been looking for something missing,” steering committee member Elizabeth Gray explained in a phone interview.

The committee was formed by putting out an open call to Ashfield residents. In September, the group created a survey asking what people are looking for in Elmer’s Store. The committee shared the survey online as well as on paper, and received 346 responses, 60% of which came from Ashfield residents.

Instead of focusing on creating a successful restaurant, the Elmer’s Revitalization Steering Committee is more focused on creating a “space for community needs,” Gray explained. The committee wrote in a statement that it is dedicated “to the goal of securing the historic Elmer’s building for the community of Ashfield. We are working hard to establish a community cafe and event space that belongs to all of us.”

According to the Franklin County Registry of Deeds, the property entered the tax-title taking process in 2021. The property owners owe $10,293 in unpaid taxes as well as other associated fees.

The owners did not tell the steering committee about the foreclosure, according to Gray. Rather, the group learned about the foreclosure in the Dec. 6 edition of the Greenfield Recorder, where Greenfield Savings Bank announced in a legal notice that there would be an auction for the property.

Since finding out about the need to purchase the business at auction, the group interested in acquiring Elmer’s has raised more than $165,000, with more than $5,000 coming from a GoFundMe campaign in one week and larger sums coming from other donors. The group hopes to raise $50,000 by March 1.

The steering committee had the property inspected by the group Rare Forms. According to the committee, Rare Forms found the building to be “generally sound” but about $250,000 worth of repairs will be needed.

“Sitting in the very center of the village,” the committee wrote in a statement, “Elmer’s has become a symbol of what is possible when a community seizes opportunity to define itself.”

Bella Levavi can be reached at 413-930-4579 or blevavi@recorder.com.

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