Canton's Cascade diner sold

Dec. 13—CANTON — The Cascade has new owners.

The iconic Canton landmark on the banks of the Grasse River and the intersection of routes 11 and 68 has been vacant since the death of its owner, Garrison T. "Gary" Barcomb, on Nov. 12, 2021.

Canton Realtor Ariane Palmer of Palmer Realty sold the diner and motel.

Palmer said the property has been on the market since the spring, and there has been a lot of interest.

Palmer, who posted a neon "for sale" sign in the diner's front window, said she had a lot of showings.

The condition of the building, which shows its age from the outside, scared interested people away, she said.

"Finding the right buyer with the means to work with it was key," Palmer said.

Diana Dufresne of Yelle Realty facilitated the buyer but only dealt with an agent. She said she did not know what would be done to the property.

Gary Barcomb's parents, Garrison and Winifred, took ownership of the former Miss Canton Diner in 1952 when it was on Main Street at the former McDonald's site.

In 1958, the diner famously was taken by flatbed truck to its current site along the Grasse River at the intersection of West Main and Gouverneur streets. The name was changed to Cascade shortly after the move.

According to the property transfer listing filed with St. Lawrence County, High Cap NY LLC of 7250 Grant Line Road, Elk Grove, California, purchased the property.

The property transfer documents state there was a property transfer tax of $1,200, which indicates a cost of about $300,000.

Garrison Barcomb and Christopher Burnham, sons of Gary Barcomb, acting for his estate, are listed as the property sellers.

According to St. Lawrence County real property records, High Cap NY already owns three properties in the county, at 18 Park Ave. and 19 Douglas Road in the village of Massena and at 55 W. Main St. in Norfolk.

The 18 Park Ave. property is the subject of state Supreme Court litigation filed last month by the village of Massena, which claims the property is a "public nuisance."

The village states in its complaint that the owners have allowed tenants to "engage in a combination of repetitive and continual criminal activities that interfere with the neighborhood's use and enjoyment of their property."

The village claims that its police department responded to 105 unique incidents at the property between Oct. 2, 2022, and Aug. 21, with the calls being incidents involving disorderly conduct, noise complaints, drug/alcohol issues, domestic disputes and abuse, harassment, theft and others.

The village is asking that a judge order, among other things, a permanent injunction prohibiting the owners from continuing to allow the alleged public nuisance or a permanent injunction allowing the village's police department to close down the property "to the extent necessary to abate the nuisance."

Attempts to reach the High Cap NY operators were unsuccessful.