Two Hartford businessmen and a group of Hartford Club members have purchased the club’s mortgage from Berkshire Bank, which had previously foreclosed on the debt, the club announced.
Alan Lazowski, chairman and CEO of Laz Parking, and Henry M. Zachs, a local realty investor and CEO of Message Center Management, joined with about 40 club members in paying off the Hartford’s Club’s approximately $1.1 million mortgage debt and back taxes.
The club did not disclose how much each party kicked in to buy the mortgage.
Berkshire Bank foreclosed on the club in 2013 and in June won the approval of a foreclosure sale. But the sale never occurred.
Lazowski and Zachs were a part of the group that stepped in last year to save West Hartford’s Crown Supermarket, which is known for its kosher offerings.
Reached by phone, Zachs said the two men had similar reasons for negotiating for the Hartford Club’s mortgage.
“We believe the Hartford Club is an institution that needs to be saved,” Zachs said.
The agreement negotiated between the parties includes a right of first refusal for UConn to lease office space on the third floor of the club, once the school moves its West Hartford campus to Front Street in late 2017. However, UConn has not agreed to any lease arrangement.
Since the beginning of 2015, the club increased membership 14 percent to 531 members while revenues from its dining room are up 11 percent, according to Thomas Natola, the club’s chief operating officer and general manager.
