Almost every day that I’m home, I spend time searching real estate listings or hitting the pavement, wandering around old neighborhoods in search of the perfect building for Lucy and I to live and work.
We’re picky. Our first house was in downtown Lexington, Ky., and it should have been condemned when we purchased it. And while bringing that building back to life was satisfying, it also was a lot more work than we ever expected. So we’ve vowed to buy a building that doesn’t have structural problems.
We also are looking for a particular vibe. We moved to our current house in Fort Mitchell, Ky., in 1996 for the fantastic schools. And while the town is quite nice, it’s far too gentrified, sleepy and homogenous for our tastes. We like being surrounded by other urban pioneers, independent entrepreneurs, craftsmen and artists. We like to be able to walk everywhere.
So we’re walking a lot of neighborhoods. And while we haven’t found the perfect building, street or neighborhood yet, we have found the perfect sign for the building.
One of the places we’re investigating is Pike Street in Covington, Ky., which is nearly perfect for us. Outside the Pike Street Lounge is this utterly fantastic welded and wicked metal bird. It suits my aesthetic perfectly – now all I need to do is find out who made that bird so I can ask them to make us a pair of dividers in that style.
Oh, and I need a building so I can hang it out front.
— Christopher Schwarz
Lived in Lexington in the fall of 71 on Avon Court off S. Limestone, about 1/2 mile to the agriculture school. When I was there it was tobacco warehouses, race track, farm services, the University and a quaint downtown. A very managable, but poor city in 71. Highways were in place for the great development of the suburbs. Visited Lexington in 1981 and almost all of the old houses and busineses were gone, it had become corporatized.
I’ve heard Covington is a good place for artists. Wish you luck.
Sounds like Brooklyn. You could move in with Pickett Furniture…they have a community shop with a fireplace for cooking. or Tools for Working Wood.
Indy seems like it has some options. And you could have the trifecta with John in house also. Er maybe not….he might convince you that you need the fridge with that router plane in the freezer.
Sounds like an exciting project.
Dave E
Bargersville, IN
Dave,
We are committed to staying in this area to help take care of family. Plus it is dirt cheap to live here. Unlike Brooklyn….
Rumor has it there is a big boat for sale on the river bank in Covington that could go for a reasonable price. You’ll just need to figure out how to keep it from wandering down river.
That boat is a dump. And a maintenance nightmare. And I’m a landlubber.
A few years ago Covington was offering grants to creatives to move downtown and renovate spaces – worth checking to see if they’re still available!
There’s always the beach;-)
I hear 1313 Mocking Bird Lane CA is up for grabs. Maybe up your street?
With the fear of repeating myself, I can only say that “the Brewery” would be perfect. Subterranean tunnels would be ideal for a coffin building gathering. Heck I might even choose to come over and volunteer to help cleaning out the basement to get the place into shape.
Could you get some pictures of this mythical spot?
Speaking as a professional, I would stay away from boats.
Brgds
Jonas
Jonas,
If I want to stay married, I need to forget about the Covington Brewery Building. It needed a new roof, all the brickwork needed new mortar, and then there was the issue of the two submerged subbasements…. Oh, and the interior had been chopped up into apartments.
But still, it’s a gorgeous building. And it was affordable (about $99,000).
You can read more about it here:
http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WMFNWG_Covington_Brewery_Building_Covington_Kentucky
Here are the photos I took of it and posted on Flickr:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lostartpress/sets/72157628284374653/
The seller took it off the market. So if my wife leaves me, I’ll knock on their door.
Thanks for the pictures.
There seems to be ample room for a couple of bedrooms in the building.
I am afraid that my wife wouldn’t like the idea of us moving to Kentucky, but there is something about those old industrial buildings that is hard to describe.
Maybe you should consider buying your wife some flowers, I think that staying away form the building probably saves you a lot of money for renovating / remodeling.
I know from a personal experience that those things aren’t cheap.
Brgds
Jonas
Your idea of hanging dividers to mark your building reminds me of an old story, which should be told in Yiddish — which I regretfully don’t speak, and you presumably don’t understand. So my recollection of the translation will have to suffice:
A stranger in town notices that his watch has stopped working, and walks down the main street to find a watchmaker. He sees a big tooth – the dentist — an enormous eyeglass frame — the oculist — and then, on a side street, he sees a large sign in the shape of a watch. Encouraged, he walks into the shop below the sign, takes out his watch, and says he wants it fixed. The storekeeper says, “I’m sorry, I can’t help you. I’m not a watchmaker, I’m a mohel.” [Man who performs ritual circumcisions.]
The stranger is disappointed and incensed: “So why do you have a watch hanging out in front?!!” The storekeeper replies, “What would you want me to hang out in front?”
Best wishes, David Greenwood
Unless you are wanting to stay in Ky, it sounds like OTR is the kind of vibe- atmosphere- you are looking for.
The bird and dividers of Damocles!
I drive by that sign on the way to work every day! Covington is… an interesting place. I’m not sure I’d want to live there, although it does have a lot of good points.
Of course I had to go to Google maps and look around. Pike street looks just excellent. What a great adventure. I wish I had done that 30 years ago. GOOD LUCK! I know you will keep us posted.
Across the river, Northside is up and coming (and as a result real estate prices are rising). But that’s where our little group of blacksmiths has landed after leaving Oakley. Quite a few artist studios, small, funky businesses, cool bars and restaurants.
Mark,
I’m over in Northside quite a bit for ShakeIt records, Northside Tavern, D’Jango etc. And we’re over in OTR a lot – my wife writes about OTR for WCPO-TV. But we’re a Kentucky company, incorporated here and committed to stay here.
Luckily there are lots of great neighborhoods to choose from in Cincinnati/NKY, and the cost of living is friendly for artisans/writers etc.
So true about the cost of living in our area. I know someone mentioned it earlier, but I’v also heard Covington has been doing a lot to encourage creatives to relocate there. Good luck on the building search in KY.
I’ll make your dividers. In fact I’d love to make you those dividers. I’ll send pics when they’re complete and you can claim them.