Sources indicate that substantial progress has been made this week in restructuring the ownership of Bistro New Albany, the downtown restaurant project that was put on hold in February when unexpected health problems caused original owner Greg Merz to pull out of the project.
I’m told that Greg’s partner, chef David Clancy, will be on board and that BNA is ready to move forward once legalities are resolved. The business plan is said to be much the same as before, and this makes me hopeful that NABC craft beer will be pouring when the doors finally open.
However, it hasn’t been discussed, as I’ve yet to meet the new partner(s).
As noted earlier this morning in NAC, the Monday and Tuesday editions of the Louisville Courier-Journal are filled with positive and hopeful news about New Albany. In Plans for Scribner Place complete, the C-J’s Ben Zion Hershberg writes:
Robert Caesar, owner of J.O. Endris and Son Jewelers in downtown New Albany, is among those who have been following the progress of Scribner Place closely.
"The people who do business in downtown New Albany and want to do business there are doing fine," Caesar said. "There just aren't many of us."
He added that "Scribner Place will make a difference" because it will make many more people aware of downtown New Albany.
"It's a paradigm shift," Caesar said.
(Estopinal Group architect Kyle) Wilson agreed, saying he already has received phone calls from three or four potential investors in the downtown area who wanted to know about the schedule for Scribner Place construction.
Clearly, downtown New Albany is an undervalued asset in the context of the Louisville metropolitan area, and an increasing number of investors from here and elsewhere are coming to understand the possibilities inherent in downtown revitalization.
Just as clearly, Scribner Place is an integral part of this prospective reawakening.
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