The long-vacant Tennessee Brewery at 495 Tennessee Street downtown may see new life — at least for the short term — this coming spring.
Plans are in the works for a six-week event to be held from April 25th to May 31st in the brewery’s courtyard space that could include a beer garden, musical performances, pop-up boutiques, movie screenings, art shows, food trucks, and more.
The event is being planned through a partnership with Memphis entrepreneur Taylor Berger, the Mayor’s Innovation Delivery Team, and Doug Carpenter & Associates.
The goal of the event is to activate the long-dormant brewery space, which is being considered for demolition by its current owners if no interested buyers come forward soon.
The building’s leasing agent James Raspberry said the building’s current ownership group has plans to demolish the 114-year-old structure if someone doesn’t step in to purchase it in the next six months.
“At this juncture, someone needs to purchase the property. The ownership group is ready to hand off the baton,” Raspberry said.
The current owners purchased the building 12 years ago, and they’ve repaired the south wall and installed a new roof, but Raspberry said “kids have gone through and just vandalized the building and ruined two to three sections of the roof.”
