Meat market owner, falsely accused of arson, to close shop

Aug. 26--The owner of a popular Cambria meat market, who battled his insurance company for years over a damage claim for a fire that nearly put him out of business, said Monday he's closing up shop.

Dispenza's Meat Market in Cambria will close by Sept. 8, owner Frank Dispenza said Monday.

He said he and his wife, Rachel, have offers to go to work for other meat-related businesses and likely will decide their future by the end of September.

"It's not a bad thing. We're extremely happy," Dispenza said.

He and his wife bought the market and a house on the same Ridge Road property in 2012, but a January 2015 fire crippled the operation.

It didn't help that their fire insurer, United Frontier Mutual Insurance Co. of Lockport, refused to pay a claim of nearly $250,000 for the damages. Instead, the insurer, whose chairman also held the mortgage on the property, accused Frank Dispenza of arson.

Dispenza, a former police officer, vehemently denied the charge and sued the insurance company. The case went to trial last October in State Supreme Court in Niagara Falls.

Testimony disclosed serious flaws in the work of the insurance company's fire investigator, and the Dispenzas won a sealed settlement from United Frontier Mutual before the case could be sent to the jury.

"We're exhausted from going through all that," Frank Dispenza said Monday. "It was great to win the lawsuit because it got the truth out there, but it didn't put us in a financial gold mine."

He said he and Rachel are looking forward to working for someone else and "not spending 18 to 20 hours a day on our shop."

He said it wasn't unusual for potential customers to knock on their door at all hours.

"We didn't want to run our business at our house anymore," said Dispenza. "It was a hard decision because we have become so close to our customers. We were the old-school butcher, like on 'The Brady Bunch,' " he added.

The Dispenzas will continue to live on Ridge Road, and their 43 acres are not for sale.

He said he and Rachel have much to offer an employer, including their expertise and specialty products they have developed.

The Sept. 8 closing date could be moved up. Dispenza said since the news was posted Friday on Facebook, customers have been flocking in.

"Everybody's been coming in panicking and buying everything we have," he said.

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