Memphis' newest pop-up brewery, Station 3: The Memphis Firehaus, could be here to stay.
The event is organized by Benjamin Orgel, Paul Stephens, Logan Scheidt and J.C. Youngblood, founders of
Tennessee Brewery: The Revival. It kicks off
October 1 and will be open through November.
With local beer, food trucks and live music, the makeup of the Firehaus will resemble the summer-long party held at the abandoned Tennessee Brewery, which is now under a $27.5 million condo development.
"It's not really the same thing as the Brewery where if no one bought it they were going to knock it down. For this one the building is not going to get knocked down," said Benjamin Orgel. "It won't be an apartment complex. We just need to find the right user and let the city enjoy this cool building." He added that it would be well-suited as a bank or an office building.
Benjamin Orgel's father, Jimmy Orgel, is the owner of the Tennessee Brewery and the No. 3 Firehouse at the corner of Third Street and Dr. MLK Jr., Avenue.
The building is in safe condition, according to Benjamin Orgel. After coming into possession of the building a year ago, the team has put in significant repairs and updates including building out an interior courtyard.
The building is two stories with around 12,000 square feet of usable space. The outside can fit around 60 cars.
"We would love for a cool use to go in there. This could be the right use for it," he added.
With the firehouse's proximity to the FedEx Forum, Orgel thinks that it could be a great official sports bar for the Grizzlies and Tigers. Orgel drew a comparison to other cities that have bars dedicated to the local team near sports arenas, like the Ballpark Village entertainment district in St. Louis.
"Popular cities everywhere are taking these big, old buildings and turning them into fun places for the public. People don't want to be in the town if they're deciding to move or move businesses and all they see are abandoned buildings," he added.
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