By Dave Fidlin
Correspondent
The family-themed Whitewater Street Restaurant will soon be overhauled and renamed the Second Salem Brewing Company, following a recent decision by members of the city Plan and Architectural Review Commission.
Applicant Christ Christon of CC Property Development LLC came before commissioners earlier this month and announced a new operations plan for the business, located at 111 W. Whitewater St.
One of the signature components of the new Second Salem operation will be a 31-gallon nanobrewery – a scaled-down microbrewery that is designed to produce beer on site and in small batches.
Initially, Christon’s operations plan calls for Second Salem to function only as a brewery. Within the next six months, a tap room, or bar seating area, is to be added to the facility.
“It’s not just about drinking to drink,” Christon said. “There’s so much involved. There’s a real science behind it. If we’re successful and put out a good product … we will draw people.”
Christon and his business partners plan to operate Second Salem from 3 to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
“We’re not looking to have a bar area where people are just going to get sloppy,” Christon said, attempting to distance Second Salem from a traditional tavern.
Christon said plans are in motion to close down the existing Whitewater Street Restaurant in the near future as the space is remodeled to accommodate Second Salem.
Commissioners voted unanimously in favor of Christon’s operations plan, though several bemoaned the loss of a family restaurant – an amenity members asserted is lacking in Whitewater.
“I have a dream to pursue, and that’s why I want to do it,” Christon said in response to commissioners’ comments. “Times change. We’re trying to evolve with the times.”
