Al’s Package Store and the large commercial property that it anchors on Edgartown’s Upper Main Street have sold to two separate buyers, as the historic family business changes hands.
Located at 258 Upper Main Street, the approximately one acre parcel changed hands on Sept. 30 for $4.25 million, according to real estate records. The buyer is an LLC linked to Todd Dagres, the co-founder and general partner of a Boston-based investment firm called Spark. The seller is an LLC managed by Gary and Amy Look.
The Look family also sold the Al’s Package Store business separately to Patrick Coogan. Mr. Coogan’s cousin, Geoghan Coogan, confirmed the sale in an email to the Gazette. The Looks declined to comment for this story.
“The Looks were specifically looking to move the business to a local family and we fit the bill!” Mr. Coogan wrote.
The Coogan family, which owns Wharf Wine & Spirits in downtown Edgartown, is not involved in the real estate transaction.
Mr. Dagres confirmed in a phone call with the Gazette that he bought the real estate. The property includes a two-floor, approximately 9,000 square foot building that houses Al’s Package Store, Larry’s Tackle Shop and two additional storefronts, as well as a large parking lot. The building also has a two-bedroom apartment on its second floor.
“I bought it as a commercial real estate investment,” Mr. Dagres said.
Mr. Dagres also owns Alchemy restaurant and the associated land on 17 Main Street in Edgartown. An LLC managed by Mr. Dagres bought that property in 2018 for $3 million.
Although he didn’t have specific plans for the property, Mr. Dagres said that there wouldn’t be immediate changes in its tenant occupancy or building structure.
“Al’s needs to be there. Larry’s tackle needs to be there. They are institutions,” Mr. Dagres said. “It’s good for the community if they are there.”
The building also used to house the former diner R & B’s Eatery, which has been closed in recent years. Mr. Dagres said that he is looking for a tenant for the space.
“I’m talking to some people about renting there. It will be some kind of retail, but I’m not sure if it’s food or another kind of retail,” Mr. Dagres said.
Donaroma’s landscaping business also has an office on the second floor of the building.
A historic business that dates back more than half a century, Al’s Package Store was originally known as Wells Package Store and purchased by Albert and Maria Genevieve Prada in 1954, according to an article in the Gazette. The couple moved the store from its original home on Main Street in 1968, where it remains to this day.
Martha and Peter Look bought the store and property in 1974, and built the current building in 1988. The store was previously located inside a house that Mr. Prada had moved from the Bend in the Road area of town, Ms. Look said in a phone call.
Ms. Look sold the property in 2004 to her son and his wife, Gary and Amy Look, who have owned and managed it in the years since.
