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Driver crashes into iconic Glastonbury restaurant, charged with DUI; owner scrambling to reopen dining room

GLASTONBURY – The downstairs tavern area at 2 Hopewell will be open Saturday night, according to owner Bill Driggs. But the upstairs dining room will be c...
Hopewell DUI 1
Driver crashes into iconic Glastonbury restaurant, charged with DUI; owner scrambling to reopen dining room

GLASTONBURY – The downstairs tavern area at 2 Hopewell will be open Saturday night, according to owner Bill Driggs. But the upstairs dining room will be closed.

Driggs was downstairs in the tavern at about 12:20 a.m., when he heard a tremendous crash. He went upstairs to the historic dining room, with beams dating back to the 1700’s, and found a car that had crashed through the wall.

The restaurant was closed for the evening, and no one inside was hurt. The driver, Seth Peckman, 33, of Manchester, also escaped serious injury, but he did not escape the law. Glastonbury Police say the he has been charged with Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol and/or Drugs and Failure to Drive Right.

Meanwhile, Driggs is scrambling.  “It’s all hands on deck to come up with a plan to reopen the dining room. We have a lot of holiday parties and functions booked, and we’re trying to service those customers.” Driggs says December is the busiest month of the year for 2 Hopewell, which has been in business for 13 years.

The restaurant sits at the corner of Hopewell Road and Route 17 in South Glastonbury. Driggs speculates that the driver passed out or fell asleep coming down Route 17 and just veered up over a berm and into the restaurant.  But “I don’t really know,” he says. “We’re just trying to get things back open, hopefully this week.”

Meanwhile, the Tavern downstairs will be open tonight, “Business as usual” he says.

Peckham was released on $2,500 non-surety bond and will appear in Manchester Superior court on December 23, 2019.

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