Maneeley’s Banquet and Catering in South Windsor has closed its large event space and the property has been sold due to declines in the event business due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Maneeley’s Grand Ballroom, a 22,000-square-foot structure at the front of the property, has been shuttered permanently. The entire property at 65 Rye Street was sold for $2 million in October.
Owner Bruce A. Maneeley said the business was not closing and he would continue catering and holding events in the Lodge building at the rear of the property when the state reopens event venues.
The Lodge is less than half the size of the ballroom and can hold up to 250 people, compared to as many as 700 in the ballroom.
Deposits have been returned to all those who had weddings scheduled and many are rebooking for next spring and transferring to the lodge, Maneeley said.
“I want to ensure my brides and clients that I am not going out of business,” he said.
COVID-19 began subtly affecting his business in March, but then as the months wore on with no vaccine and cases skyrocketing, things looked bleaker.
At first, Maneeley said trade shows began canceling events and turning to Zoom.
And then schools began canceling proms, followed by people canceling weddings, retirement parties and graduations. He has been unable to hold any events in the ballroom since the pandemic began.
During a typical December, Maneeley said he was used to hosting 60 to 80 functions between the ballroom and lodge, and 450-550 off-site events. Now, Maneeley said he is lucky if he has 15 to 20 off-site parties.
