Page 6 - BusinessWest August 7, 2023

The team at the Easthampton location, where it all started. Staff Photo
engineering career and open up a bagel place.”
This blueprint, if that’s what it can be called, took a while to
become reality, he told BusinessWest.
Indeed, the Zawackis looked at a few possible locations that
didn’t work out, and then, in 2012, some friends suggested the old railroad depot in the center of Easthampton, owned by Williston Academy, a landmark with an intriguing history.
In 1854, Samuel Williston, a but- ton manufacturer and founder of what is now Williston Northampton School, established the Hampden Railroad
Co. with business partner Joel Hayden and purchased the now-extinct route of the Northampton-New Haven Canal, according to willistonblogs.com. After completing the 24 miles of railroad, they also constructed a small depot to go along with it.
Built in 1871, the station included a waiting room, a baggage room, and an office for the stationmaster. After rail service ended in the 1950s, Williston Academy purchased the property with the intention of using it as a mainte- nance building. Years later, it housed art studios and, eventually, became home to a painting teacher, Marcia Reed. Upon her retirement in 2012, the build- ing was put up for lease again.
The Zawackis approached the school about leasing the property, and a concept that had been on paper and in the works for more than a decade was
soon to be on ... well, the fast track.
Actually, there were extensive renovations that had to be under-
taken, said Zawacki, adding that Tandem Bagel officially opened in late March 2013.
Over the past decade, it has been a key player in the transforma- tion of the city from a mill town to a destination characterized by a diverse economy, a thriving arts community, a burgeoning restau- rant and hospitality scene, and a growing cannabis sector. Indeed, the bagel shop has drawn customers, and many regulars, not only people living and working in the mills, attending Williston Academy, and visiting the city to take in its many attractions, but also people
“I’ve looked everywhere, from Westfield recently to Longmeadow and Springfield; we’ve also looked at Greenfield. We’re just looking for the right space.”
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6 AUGUST 7, 2023
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