Need a place to watch the derby this weekend? You’re in luck because the Villa Hills Civic Club, a legacy community institution that burned down in 2022, recently celebrated its reopening and is preparing for a Kentucky Derby party this weekend.
“We’re expecting a lot of new people and fun people this weekend for the Derby, and then we’ll continue to do great events,” said Civic Club President Ernie Brown. “We always used to have steak nights. Those are coming back. Burger nights with the Spartans and the Longhorns [both youth sports teams], those are coming back, and any kind of fun event we can think of to have people come in and enjoy themselves.”
The club celebrated its reopening last weekend, and Brown said the club gained about 140 new memberships during that time.
“I think we’re up over 500 [memberships] now; that’s families,” Brown said. “Last year, we closed out the year at 587 families. And this year – it’s the beginning of May – we’re already at that mark.”
The club originally opened in 1961 and caught fire in February 2022. When asked what caused the fire, Brown replied: “careless smoking.”
Apparently, Brown said, some members had been smoking cigars on the outdoor patio. They crushed their cigars in an ashtray, but on the fateful night, Feb. 17, 2022, the weather conditions were windy.
In a video from the night, you can see the ashtray inching off the table in the wind and falling under the wooden deck, where the embers caught fire on the dry grass and vegetation. The wind coming off the lake behind the club didn’t help, and the fire burned for about two hours before anyone noticed and called 911.
Insurance eventually paid out about $600,000 for the damage, and the club formed a building committee to come up with a plan. Early bids for rebuilding were “astronomical,” as Brown said, well over $1 million. To avoid going into debt, the club appealed to its membership, community partners and vendors for donations and discounts. They managed to fund the rebuilding debt free, and as they got closer to their goal, people’s generosity seemingly expanded.
The new building sports an outdoor covered shelter where the old club used to be, a back patio facing the lake (which includes an indoor vantage point with bar stools where people can view the lake from the inside), new TVs and other accoutrements, a 10-foot, disability-accessible walkway around the building and even a new bar made from 19th century oak sourced from an old general store from New Haven in Nelson County. They’re also working on putting in a children’s playground, but that fixture was not yet constructed when LINK nky visited.
The new outdoor patio at the Villa Hills Civic Club. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky 
The walkway surrounding the rebuilt Villa Hills Civic Club. Also pictured: Ernie Brown. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky 
The viewing window facing the lake at the Villa Hills Civic Club. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky 
The refurbished oak bar at the rebuilt Villa Hills Civic Club. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky 
A close-up of the refurbished oak bar at the rebuilt Villa Hills Civic Club. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky 
The main meeting area at the Villa Hills Civic Club. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky
Brown said that smoking is still allowed in the outdoor covered shelter. Otherwise, the campus is smoke-free.
You don’t need to be a Villa Hills resident to join, although Villa Hills club members are the only ones who can cast votes on club business and decisions. Memberships are $50 a year.
“That was a big thing for us, for families to come down and enjoy themselves,” said Donny King, a bar manager and board member.
“People were happy to see new place, and most everybody thought it was great,” said Assistant Bar Manager Dave Driehaus of the staff reopening last Thursday. “Come back, should be great for everybody.”
Learn more about the Villa Hills Derby Day event at its Facebook events page.