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Owners of Hottle’s Buying Up Other Property in Wilkes-Barre

WILKES-BARRE — The folks who renovated a long-time restaurant in Wilkes-Barre have their sights set on other properties in the city. Their reason for doin...

WILKES-BARRE -- The folks who renovated a long-time restaurant in Wilkes-Barre have their sights set on other properties in the city. Their reason for doing so, in their opinion, is that everyone will benefit.

Donahue's Hour Glass, the old Irish bar on South Main street in Wilkes-Barre had its last call a couple months ago.  Now, new owners plan to bring back the booze.

The Burns family bought the building and expects to rename it Donahue’s Irish Pub.

“My sister in the family had a vision to open it,” said Rennee Burns, who, along with others in her family, is investing in several projects in the city.

James Everett’s family used to own the bar. He worked there 50 years ago.

“It's nice to know that they're going to continue the tradition of our bar. It was a very popular bar back in the 60s and 70s and even the 80s,” he said.

The family recently opened Hottle’s Pizza and Pasta on North Main Street. They also plan to turn the old American Legion building on North River Street into a five-star restaurant. And earlier this year, they reopened Hottle's Seafood on South Main Street, which was open for 70 years before closing in 2010.

The family isn't just opening places to eat. They're also remodeling the Union Street Square building into apartments, expected to open sometime late next year.

Rich Adams runs Around Town Bikes, just across the street from those apartments. He hopes more people move downtown.

“We're always trying to sell more bikes, but we need people to come to the store,” he said.

The Burns family includes a former member of city council. They hope others believe in Wilkes-Barre like they do.

“Community has to develop, people have to begin to trust each other,” Renee said.

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