Grantham
Charles Mitchell of Mitchell Automotive was evicted by his landlord, Irving Oil, for non-payment of rent last Thursday, said Sullivan County Sheriff John Simonds.
“Hopefully, we will have it straightened out very quickly,” said Mitchell, who has operated out of the shop in Sawyer Brook Plaza, off Interstate 89’s Exit 13 in Grantham, since 1990.
The 47-year-old mechanic said a divorce forced him into money troubles.
Simonds, the sheriff, said the process to evict Mitchell for non-payment heated up in October when Irving asked the sheriff’s department to serve a demand for rent. Irving has a Circle K gas station next to Mitchell Automotive, and the parcel is owned by an Arizona-based company that Irving works with.
Because Mitchell ultimately didn’t pay up, the Sheriff’s Department at 3:30 p.m. last Thursday posted the property. Irving’s Operations Manager Jason Mahon confirmed Simonds version of events.
The lights were still on inside the shop on Wednesday morning and a padlock was secured to the front door.
Several pink writ of possession notices were fixed to the side of the shop, stating that if anyone enters onto the premises they would be subject to arrest for criminal trespassing.
Mahon, of Irving, said representatives are now working with Mitchell’s customers to get them their property back. Several motor vehicles still remain on the lot, and most of Mitchell’s equipment is still inside.
A second set of notices were also posted at the shop. They directed customers to a phone number they could call to get their personal property back. In bold letters the signs read: “Please be advised that this business is now closed.”
Mitchell, who is well-known in town from his business, said he hopes this isn’t the end of the road for his auto repair work.
He said he hopes to open a shop in another location in Grantham in the near future. He’d entertain offers to move back into his existing space, but said he doesn’t think Irving will be open to that.
Grantham Town Clerk Kenneth Story said the closing of the business was “news” to him on Wednesday, and Selectboard Chairman Warren Kimball characterized the situation as “out of the blue.” He said he only learned of the circumstances over the weekend.
The town at one point had concerns with Mitchell’s garage, according to a letter filed at the Grantham Town Hall.
The January 2015 letter from Town Administrator Melissa White, which was addressed to Mitchell, said officials were concerned with the “accumulation of unregistered vehicles” on the lot and “would like them removed as soon as possible.”
That issue has been remedied, Kimball said.
Mitchell’s fiancee, Kris Chase, on Wednesday read aloud to a reporter a few letters people had written to Mitchell in recent years, thanking him for his service — at all hours of the day and night.
“He would never leave anybody abandoned,” Chase said. “He took really good care of people who were dealing with financial hardships.”
A few people swung by the shop on Wednesday to peek at the signs on the doors of the shop in an attempt to find out what was going on. Nobody had commented on the repair shop’s Facebook page since the eviction, but in months prior, several people had.
“These guys got me out of a serious bind at 5:30 on a Friday evening,” one man said. “No chance I’d find that kind of service at that hour in Boston.”
Others expressed the same sentiment. “Thanks for helping us out on Sunday! You were a real lifesaver — after hours and so nice,” a woman said. “We can’t thank you enough for helping us with our ill-timed flat tire!”
Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.