New Life for Square One - As an Art Gallery

1,860 Views | 5 Replies | Last: 12 yr ago by techno-ag
techno-ag
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AG
Cassie has an interesting article in the Eagle today about a couple from Texas State who are revamping the old Square One location. They plan on living upstairs and selling their art and wine downstairs.

http://www.theeagle.com/brazosbusiness/Couple-plans-to-reopen-Square-One-as-gallery

quote:
Square One in downtown Bryan may reopen later this year, but this time the former restaurant space will be an art gallery and residence.

Jill and Bob Pankey, Texas State University professors, plan on renovating, residing in and opening the building at 211 William J. Bryan Parkway to the public.

The Pankeys said they'd like to keep the name Square One if possible.

"We'd love to honor the former owners and just keep the Square One building as is," Jill Pankey said. "We like being a part of tradition and Aggies and tradition, it kind of all goes together."

Bob Pankey, 60, said he was familiar with the movement toward redevelopment in the downtown Bryan area, having stayed in contact with friends in the area after attending Texas A&M for a few years.

Pankey said the opportunity "kind of fell in our laps." The couple wasn't quite ready to purchase a property because they had reached retirement yet, but the market in Bryan was too good to pass on.

"When opportunity knocks we had to go for it," he said.
capn-mac
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That will be worth keeping an eye upon if only to see how P&Z handles the mixed-use without having to legally separate the addresses.

At least they will have no issues with a Conditional Use Permit from TABC. (But, TABC may also require a separate entrance to the residence, too--got to love these catch-22s.)

One of the "next things" Downtown needs is a "Mixed Use by Application" zoning. That way, a person could apply to live above their business, but not necessarily rent garrets of commercial lease space.
capn-mac
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Oh, and to be perfectly clear, I applaud this sort intention; I think that is an excellent use of the space and a great addition to the character of downtown.
Newbomb_Turk
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I think Techno's comment is a bit misleading. The article simply states:

quote:
Pankey said her husband is a wine maker, so once he's retired it's likely they'll begin to produce wine to serve during the art shows.


Doesn't say they are going to sell wine all the time. The Frame Gallery sells wine on First Friday.

Glad to see something good happening with this space, after the debacle of the past year.

[This message has been edited by Newbomb_Turk (edited 6/16/2011 3:21p).]
AboveAndBeyond
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It actually looks pretty good in there. They have had a few in the front window for a few weeks now.
capn-mac
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Ok, I missed the winemaker part entire.
Which is a whole 'nuther can o'worms.

Not sure what the rule is for giving away wine. Or if anyone 'serving' in that sense needs a TABC Server card.

Makes my head loop-loop-loop, it does (which normally requires figuring out how to combine a given muni's IBC and NEC, NFPC, rules . . .
techno-ag
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AG
Hmmm. It's a good question. Perhaps if they just serve the wine at art shows, it would be similar to any other business serving drinks at a reception, etc.

Now, if someone wanted to buy a bottle of wine after sampling it at the show, could the Pankeys sell it to them on the spot? Probably then they'd need a permit, huh? I'm no TABC expert. I wonder if they could offer to mail a bottle to people since Texas lets wine be mailed to residents.

Well, best wishes to the Pankeys. Hope they enjoy their retirement in beautiful Downtown Bryan.
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