State Street Bar and Grill owners purchase the park bench

August 26, 2008

Jamie Busen

The Park Bench cafe and gift shop at 115 N. Fourth has new owners.

Jerry and Sue Schmidt, who already own State Street Bar and Grill at 17th and State, bought the downtown business from Tina Sutter earlier this month.

Sutter opened the Park Bench four years ago, and about a month ago, she opened a second shop inside Great Debate Books in the Maine Center at Sixth and Maine.

The Schmidts don’t plan to keep the second shop open, but there will be a coffee shop in the recently opened bookstore. Jan Bartz, who owns Coffee on Broadway, has opened a second store in the Sixth and Maine location.

“This is just a business I’ve always liked and enjoyed coming to myself,” said Sue Schmidt, who previously worked for Quincy Medical Group. “When the opportunity arose ... it was definitely something we wanted to look into.”

Sutter could not be reached for comment. She opened the business in October 2004 inside the building where R&W Antiques once was. The nearly 2,400-square-foot space was renovated, much of it by building owner Dan Griffin. The interior was completely redone, with fresh walls, lighting and plumbing. The trademark three-arch main facade on Fourth Street was retained.

Griffin still owns the building and is leasing it to the Schmidts.

Sue Schmidt said “nothing drastic” will be changed, although some menu items might be added.

“Everybody seems to enjoy and love the place the way it is,” she said. “We don’t want to do anything different to it.”

The Park Bench is open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

Bartz opened Coffee on Broadway, 2831 Broadway, in January 2006. It has since faced competition from Starbucks, which opened about three blocks east on Broadway.

She said a smaller, more simplified menu is offered in the store inside the Maine Center. Bartz said sandwiches and salads are prepared in the mornings and prewrapped for people to “grab and go” at lunch. Patrons can also eat inside the bookstore, and there is a full array of hot and cold coffee drinks.

“There are a lot of possibilities,” Bartz said of the second store. “The downtown is a very close, nice, chummy neighborhood in this confined place, and it’s all within walking distance. I think this is a real chance to build something positive.”