The Hoos Building, which was destroyed by a raging fire on November 20, was located right next to Little Beaver Kill Creek. Charlie Irace, the code enforcement officer for the Town of Rockland, said that as of November 26 the owner of the building, Barry Foster, has not yet settled with the insurance company and does not know if he is going to rebuild the structure, which dates to 1903. If Foster decides to rebuild, it will have to be done through the planning process.

The blaze broke out on November 20, and destroyed the building, which housed the popular eatery The Lazy Beagle Pub and Grill, as well as a home, kitchen and accessory shop called Willow and Brown, a coffee shop called Moose-Be-Morning Coffee Company and a shop called Hot Corner Collectibles.

Residents said there was a series of several explosions early on, which fire officials believe were caused by exploding propane tanks, with the first one starting in the coffee shop. Witnesses said the blaze spread quickly to all of the stores. One firefighter suffered a minor injury while battling the blaze, but there were no other injuries.

Electricity was shut off throughout the hamlet for a while, and Main Street was closed to traffic for several hours. By 7:20 p.m., the power had been restored to most areas.

A post on the Lazy Beagle’s Facebook page said, “We regret to inform you that the Lazy Beagle entered into mortality on Nov. 20, 2012. We are grateful no one lost their life and we are especially grateful to our amazing customers who made it worth going to work every day. For now, thank you so much for the outpouring of support. You have no idea how we appreciate it.”

A post on the Willow and Brown website said, “We will not be able to fulfill any orders for some time. Thank you for thinking of us and we hope to be able to assist you in the future.”