As Taken From Greenfield Record Article:

CONWAY — For more than half a century, Baker’s Country Store has sat on River Street, where it has offered fresh baked goods, pumped gas and served as the unofficial town gathering spot for residents.

It’s survived countless snowstorms, the 2017 tornado and even the torrential downpours that plagued the town last year. Its future, though, is now in doubt after a July 17 rainstorm dumped upwards of 2 inches of rain on the town in an hour, which overwhelmed the catch basin above the store and sent water flowing over the 6-inch berm the Bakers had constructed, severely damaging the embankment, crushing the septic tank and washing away part of the parking lot.

With tens of thousands, if not more than $100,000 in damages, owner Helen Baker and her husband, Fire Chief Robert Baker, are facing the reality that they may need to close the family business.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do. I really don’t,” said Helen Baker, who bought the store from her mom in 1985 and has worked there since 1972. She added she has never faced a weather event like this before. “Even during the tornado, I stayed open through the whole thing.”

Due to the septic tank damage, the store has no bathrooms and Baker’s Country Store can no longer sell fuel because a Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection representative advised them that the 2,000-gallon tank is at risk of damage. Fuel sales, Helen Baker added, account for about half of the store’s income.

After the flooding, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation upgraded the catch basin on Route 116 and the Bakers have had several conversations with the agency. Due to the damage being caused by an unusually severe storm and not MassDOT’s action or inaction, it does not have the responsibility to repair the damage. The state’s right-of-way, according to Robert Baker, stops several feet before where the damage occurred on their property.

No previous damage complaints have been logged to MassDOT at the location.

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