So apparently this building called Vel’s Grocery & Café was actually VJ’s Grocery & Café. Now the property and land date back to pre-statehood when a man named A N Toungate purchased the property in 1844 when several mature oak trees covered the outdoor area. 
Ruby May Spradley purchased this land from A N Toungate and his family in 1931 for grocery and market commerce purposes. However the building for VJ’s Grocery & Café was built in 1932 and would open later in 1933.
This building was constructed on a wooden frame plan and the walls were constructed out of stone on a slab foundation. A basement below the upper level goes at least 7 feet underground leading into a 2 foot sink area. Now this building is located on a slope and is hard to tell if there is actually a basement or not.
The main building consisted of VJ's Grocery on the upper level facing FM 2769. The grocery store and market was 3,037 square feet. The main building was renovated with an addition and deck which was used as a bar and tavern. The interior floors are concrete. 3 utility outbuildings were constructed for meter storage. A well was installed on the property for the purpose of providing water. 3 gas pumps were installed outside. The interior floors are concrete.
VJ’s Café was located on the upper level and the lower level with decking for outdoor dining and views of Lake Travis. Eventually VJ’s Café was later relocated to the lower level. The interior floors are concrete. The restaurant and bar were 2,979 square feet.
VJ’s has undergone several name changes and deed changes over the years. The property has seen several owners. VJ’s Grocery & Café was also known as Vel’s Grocery & Café and VJ's Grocery de Restaurant. VJ's Grocery de Restaurant was a coffee shop.
Now this building was not always home to VJ’s Grocery & Café. A family-owned and operated grocery store called Spradley’s Grocery operated here until 1963 when Vernon Voght and John Nicholson purchased the property and renamed the building to VJ’s Grocery & Café.
There were “red light district activities” that went on at VJ’s Grocery & Café. The basement of VJ’s supposedly served as a brothel. This was an area of the building rumored to have once been a brothel which was known as “the cave”. Many longtime residents and locals claim prostitution was said to have taken place below VJ’s Grocery. This was some of the illegal activity that when on in the VJ’s Grocery & Café.
This part of the building was off limits to many except John Nicholson as he lived where he worked. He did not only live where he worked, he owned the property his business was located on. His family members were the only other people which were permitted to go down there. Now there have been non-family members that were residents living down there as that is where the downstairs living area was located. Various families lived down there also. There have an assortment of businesses upstairs over the years.
Vernon Voght and John Nicholson purchased the property from Ruby May Spradley in September 1963. This is when Vernon Voght and John Nicholson would rename the building to VJ’s Grocery & Café.
Bob Freeman bought VJ’s Grocery & Café from Vernon Voght and John Nicholson in 1986. He and his wife, Dianna Freeman, would run the grocery store and café. They had the gas pumps removed in 1986. A scene from the Clint Eastwood movie “A Perfect World” was filmed at VJ’s Grocery & Café in 1992. Supposedly VJ’s has served as the backdrop and recording location for many movies over several years. Clint Eastwood would often use VJ’s as a recording location.
Dianna Freeman was the proprietor of VJ's Grocery & Cafe in 1996. By then VJ's Grocery & Cafe was “Volente's unofficial community center”. VJ's Grocery & Cafe was a daily stop for many including police and politicians. The building was well renown for its historic design.
For whatever the reasons were, Diane Freeman shut down VJ's Grocery & Cafe in 2008. The property was sold to developers after VJ’s closed. Despite being sold to various developers, the store never reopened.
The property was foreclosed on later in 2008 and the land was transferred to Larry Feingersh on a transfer of lien by Black Rock Management and JEM Advisory Group, LLC. Black Rock Management and JEM Advisory Group, LLC would transfer the land and buildings to Larry Feingersh. Rick Feingersh was one of the managers.
Stallion Texas Real Estate would purchase the land from Larry Feingersh and JEM Advisory Group, LLC in 2015.
Loved Homes of Volente purchased the property in hopes of renovating the VJ’s Grocery & Café to become a housing unit in January 2016. After Loved Homes purchased VJ’s in 2016, Loved Homes hired, Development and Construction to create a plan for the redevelopment. Much of VJ’s history came to light in Community Impact newspaper when Kellie Rush-Frie of Frie Planning began digging around the property disproving a handful of historic artifacts such as a bullet dating back to 1932.
A discussion on the restrictive covenants of the rezoned lots of VJ’s Grocery & Café was held at City Hall on Thursday, March 9, 2017 at 4:00 PM. An attorney to discussed the possible restrictive covenants and/or conditional overlay for the lots to be rezoned for Loved Homes of Volente. Pursuant to Chapter 211.007(a) of the Local Government Code and Section 30.138(C) of the VOV Zoning Ordinance. Village of Volente had decided the current Nonconforming Structure that will remain as is.
Fogarasi motioned to accept Planning and Zoning's recommendation to change the zoning, per their recommendation, under the specific restrictive covenants that will be reviewed and defined over the next 60 days that must include in the covenants that Loved Homes use lots 10, 1 and 2 for restaurant, grocery store, coffee shop and storage, and other restrictive covenants that are mutually negotiated.
VJ's was destined to be the new focal point of the community of Volente by being transformed into a neighborhood coffee shop. However despite their best efforts, the building was deemed to be too structurally unsound to be rehabilitated.
Loved Homes of Volente let the buildings on the property including VJ’s decay and had clearly not paid their debt expenses. They owed $45,000 dollars in debt to Stallion Texas Real Estate. This led the property to be foreclosed on the for the 5th time in a row. Their accumulated overall debt was close to $245,000 dollars which was actually $200,000 dollars. Loved Homes of Volente had no choice but to sell the property back to Stallion Texas Real Estate.
So the property was sold to Stallion Texas Real Estate on the date of Tuesday, October 2, 2018. A man named Benjamin K. Williams who became the beneficiary for VJ’s lots, buildings, and surrounding property. Benjamin K. Williams was employed by Stallion Texas Real Estate. More property was later sold to Stallion Texas Real Estate in 2018.
VJ’s was put on the market again by Stallion Texas Real Estate in October 2, 2019 for any potential buyers who are interested. VJ’s Grocery & Café is now considered to be a historical building. No remodeling has been done since then. Stallion Texas Real Estate and Benjamin K. Williams now own the property as they are beneficiaries for this land. Benjamin K. Williams currently manages this property.
VJ’s Grocery & Café is located at 15401 FM 2769, Volente, Texas, US 78641.
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