As The Deck rebuilds, a larger restaurant is planned

Oct. 29--SALISBURY -- Just a corner of The Deck restaurant still stands after demolition of the charred remains following an August fire, but owner Mark Audette is moving quickly to rebuild to ensure the popular riverside eatery can reopen in May.

Called in about 7 a.m. on Saturday morning Aug. 22, a two-alarm blaze damaged much of the exterior of The Deck. The waterfront site, a gathering place for many who enjoyed the food and view, was in the midst of the busiest part of its season, following a $175,000 expansion.

The cause of the fire that shuttered the restaurant and lounge was declared "undetermined" by investigators from both the state fire marshal's office and the state police arson unit, according to Audette. That leaves his insurance company to pursue finding what triggered the blaze that put all of his employees out of work.

But Audette is moving forward, hoping to rebuild the exterior shell of the new incarnation of The Deck by the time the first snow falls, so the interior can be constructed during the winter after the building is weather-tight.

Demolition of the unsafe, burned portion of the building has taken place, he said, leaving only about 30 percent of the former structure remaining. The fire traveled across the ceiling, causing more damage than he first thought.

Audette has already been before the Salisbury Conservation and Liquor Licensing commissions, both of which gave him the all clear to move ahead. Currently, he's awaiting the OK from building inspector Scott Vandewalle, who is reviewing Audette's plan for the rebuild.

Because of the extent of the fire damage, Audette will be able to make improvements when he reconstructs the site. If he gets the building inspector's approval, those improvements include enlarging the kitchen to encompass the entire inside of the building, meaning there will no longer be a bar or dining seating for customers indoors, he said.

Audette's new plan includes building a 13-foot high roof over about 65 percent of the exterior deck to protect patrons from the weather.

"During the summers, on those 90-degree days, it could get pretty hot outside for our customers, even with the umbrellas," he said. "People will still be able to sit at tables with umbrellas, but they'll also be able to get away from the sun and into the shade under the roof."

The previous cooking area was quite small, basically a galley kitchen without much room for multiple cooks. As a result, the former restaurant's entire menu wasn't as available as he would have preferred. By enlarging the kitchen, The Deck's entire menu will be available all the time, he said.

He expects the capacity of the new restaurant to increase to 200 people, about 50 more than could be accommodated previously. The new restaurant will serve lunch and dinner, he added.

"I'm not happy the fire happened; it put a lot of good people out of work," Audette said. "But with the new plans, we'll be able to serve our patrons better. I think they'll be happy with our new layout."

With arson incidents taking place in the region within days of The Deck fire, Audette was concerned that arson might be involved. The declaration of the fire's origin as undetermined frustrated Audette, a businessman who had never experienced a fire previously. He said he wants to know if someone burned down The Deck in the middle of its most lucrative season.

"They've told me the fire started outside," Audette said last month. "I found it so odd that it started outside. If someone set this fire, I want to know. I have insurance; I can rebuild. But the fire put 60 people out of work. That's really sad. If someone set this fire, they impacted a lot of innocent people."

At one time, Audette considered offering a reward to anyone who could provide investigators with information that would lead to the arrest and conviction of whoever may have purposely burned the building. But law enforcement advised against it, he said.

"When everyone told me to back off, I backed off," Audette said. "I threw my hands up."

Audette, who also owns Ring's Island Marina, opened The Deck in July 2013, a year after purchasing the Bridge Marina property, which included the former Fish Tale Diner, a local favorite for breakfast and lunch. He hadn't planned to reopen the restaurant, he said, but when his son, Conrad, approached him to do so, he reconsidered because he liked the idea of working with his son.

After a major interior renovation to bring the 1940s diner up to code, Audette opened in 2013, putting on the addition in 2014. Fronting the Merrimack River with a view of Newburyport's waterfront, from the moment it opened, The Deck quickly became a popular restaurant and bar during its season, which is May through October.

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