Share Kitchen and Bar Room, 5590 Main St. in Williamsville. Owner Joel Schreck has filed plans to expand the restaurant's dining room and open a patio on the roof of the addition. Members of the village Historic Preservation Commission, which must approve the request, have given it a lukewarm reception. 

This rendering shows the proposed expansion of Share Kitchen and Bar Room, 5590 Main St. in Williamsville. Owner Joel Schreck would expand the dining room onto what is now sidewalk dining and open new patio seating on top of the one-story addition.

The owner of a popular Williamsville restaurant says he may go out of business by January if a village preservation panel doesn't approve his expansion plan.

Joel Schreck, the owner of Share Kitchen & Bar Room on Main Street, wants to enclose the outdoor tables along one side of the restaurant and set out new patio seating on the roof of this addition.

But some village Historic Preservation Commission members have raised concerns about the project's effect on the two-story building, a local historic landmark, and on views of the neighboring Williamsville Water Mill. So far, they've declined to endorse the proposal.

The debate over the Share expansion has played out on social media, in the pages of the Amherst Bee weekly newspaper and at the most recent Village Board meeting.

It's the latest example of the age-old tension between those who want to do whatever they can to encourage small businesses in Williamsville and those who don't want this to happen at the expense of the village's historic character.

"By putting the one-story addition on, I'm not sure that that's in the best interest of the historical integrity of the buildings," said Mary Lowther, a Williamsville trustee who formerly served as mayor and as chairwoman of the commission. "I think Joel has a really successful business, but I think he's kind of outgrown that footprint."

Schreck, who has collected hundreds of signatures on petitions in support of his expansion, insists if the village rejects the project he'll probably close this winter.

"It is actually a necessity for us to have it for long-term survival," he said.

A longtime village resident who attended Williamsville schools, Schreck opened Share in March 2016 at the corner of Main and East Spring streets in space that previously housed Sweet Jenny's, Coffee Culture Café & Eatery and BillyBar. Buffalo News restaurant critic Andrew Galarneau in 2021 said Share boasted "the most interesting Village of Williamsville menu in ages."

The dinner-only restaurant near Glen Park can serve up to 70 patrons inside along with 25 to 28 seats outside used mainly from early June to early September, Schreck said.

For years, Schreck has tried to extend this outdoor dining season. In 2017, he submitted plans to build a metal awning along East Spring, from which he would drape plastic sheeting to allow for comfortable use of the outdoor tables into the spring and fall.

The plan stalled at the Historic Preservation Commission without receiving an up-or-down vote, Schreck said. He introduced a similar proposal in late 2019 or early 2020 but the Covid-19 pandemic upended that idea.

Schreck said the challenges he has faced over the past couple of years have made it clear he needs the revenue that would come from using the outdoor seating on a year-round basis.

Under his latest plan, Share would build a one-story addition along East Spring Street, making the 25 or so outdoor seats a permanent part of the dining room, and adding a similar number of seats on a new rooftop patio.

Schreck and his architect, Dave Sutton, said the changes would fit the character of the structure, which was built in the late 1800s and restored and updated over the years, most recently for Coffee Culture more than a decade ago. It was named a village local landmark in 2014, requiring commission review of the addition.

Sutton and Schreck presented the proposal at the June 28 Historic Preservation Commission meeting. Members asked a lot of a questions about the project design, what materials would be used, how patrons would access the new rooftop patio and whether expanding the restaurant out 10 feet would infringe on the view of the historic mill looking down from Main Street.

Members didn't vote on the plan that night but, according to the meeting minutes, had an overall favorable view of the proposal.

Commission members at the July 26 meeting raised more concerns about the project, with new Chairwoman Kate Waterman-Kulpa – she filled a vacancy on the commission following Lowther's election to the Village Board – saying it's a big addition to a historic building, according to the minutes of that meeting.

Waterman-Kulpa later said she does not like the addition, the minutes show, while member Jim Tammaro said he was ready to vote "yes" that night.

Annoyed the project remained stalled, Schreck started an online petition – it has 1,285 signatures as of Saturday morning – and collected signatures door to door in the village to show he has public support.

"I think my frustration more lies in, really, the authority that the village Historic Preservation Commission has, and no accountability," he said.

Schreck and Sutton were back before the commission Aug. 23. Members again debated the expansion's effect on how someone views the restaurant building and the neighboring mill.

Only five of seven commission members attended the meeting. First, a motion to deny the application failed to secure the required four votes. Then, a motion to approve a certificate of appropriateness failed for the same reason.

The commission voted to put the project back on the agenda for the Sept. 27 meeting.

Mayor Deb Rogers said the commission led by Waterman-Kulpa, with whom she has clashed, is too inflexible and unwilling to work with business operators. Waterman-Kulpa declined comment.

"I don't understand at all why this is such a contentious issue," Rogers said. "For me, it's, you know, a nonissue, but it's being made into an issue."

Lowther said the commission does its best to accommodate requests from Main Street businesses.

In this case, though, she encouraged Schreck to consider moving to another, larger location in Williamsville. She noted Nest in the Village is moving across Main Street now.

"I want Joel to succeed," Lowther said. "But, like I said, other businesses that have outgrown their space move to a different space."

Schreck said he can't find another site so well suited for his restaurant and, further, he said the village needs to remember the history of its commercial buildings is still being written.

"We're trying to create history for the future here, too," he said. "It's not all about what happened, you know, 100 years ago."

Get local news delivered to your inbox!

I report on development, government, crime and schools in the northern Erie County suburbs. I grew up in the Town of Tonawanda and worked at the Post-Standard in Syracuse before joining The News in 2001. Email: swatson@buffnews.com

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

"I am forever grateful for this community. I will always advocate for Western New York," said Paladino, a Buffalo developer.

State Democratic Chairman Jay S. Jacobs Thursday criticized Rep. Lee Zeldin, the GOP gubernatorial candidate, for ignoring the Wednesday revelation that Paladino suggested to a radio interviewer that Attorney General Merrick Garland "probably should be executed."

Share Kitchen and Bar Room, 5590 Main St. in Williamsville. Owner Joel Schreck has filed plans to expand the restaurant's dining room and open a patio on the roof of the addition. Members of the village Historic Preservation Commission, which must approve the request, have given it a lukewarm reception. 

This rendering shows the proposed expansion of Share Kitchen and Bar Room, 5590 Main St. in Williamsville. Owner Joel Schreck would expand the dining room onto what is now sidewalk dining and open new patio seating on top of the one-story addition.

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.