The new brewery and 130-seat pub are projected to open in April 2017, which will coincide with the projected residential occupancy of the Delco Loft’s 132 apartment units as well as the start of the Dayton Dragons’ season next year, Barnhart said.
Lock 27 joins a growing list of early-stage and completed development in the area. Marriott has awarded a 115-room Fairfield Inn and Suites franchise to the Water Street development, with plans calling for a seven-story hotel that would complement an existing 50,000-square-foot office and retail building that also is scheduled to house a Basil's on Market restaurant. Other projects call for construction of an estimated 300 apartment units as well as dozens of condominiums in the area that is just east-northeast of downtown Dayton's central core.
“We are excited to become a part of the burgeoning Dayton marketplace, and are honored to become the first tenant in the long-dormant Delco building,” Barnhart said in a release.
In an interview, Barnhart said there are no plans to close or move the existing Lock 27 on Ohio 48 in south Centerville, which has “a strong presence is the Centerville community, one that we intend to support indefinitely.”
The downtown Dayton Lock 27 pub will occupy the first floor of the Delco Lofts, and the production brewery will be constructed in the building’s basement.
“While the two operations are physically located on separate floors, we have a plan in place that will create a cohesive gastropub and brewery experience,” Barnhart said.
The new brewery will allow Lock 27 to distribute its beer in kegs to restaurants and bars in the region. There are no immediate plans to can or bottle beers for retail sale, at least for now, Barnhart said. The pub will serve wine and cocktails in addition to beer, he said.
Jason Woodard, principal of Woodard Development, called Lock 27 a “phenomenal partner” for the Delco Lofts project and said the pub and brewery “will create a customer experience like no other in Dayton.”
Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley said in a release that the Water Street District’s success in attracting businesses such as Lock 27 Brewing “shows how well we have done in capitalizing on the river and making downtown a destination.”
Barnhart, of Washington Twp., is a native of Chicago who moved to the Dayton area in 1984. He spent 15 years working in corporate development at NCR. An avid home-brewer since 1997, Barnhart opened Lock 27 in Centerville in June 2013.
Barnhart said he had been looking to expand, but was not in a rush.
“It’s my belief that great breweries are built in decades, not years,” he said.
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