A previously abandoned and dilapidated Covington fire station has been transformed into one of the city’s newest bar concepts.
The Firehouse at Covington Yard, located at 419 Greenup Street, is an extension of the popular Covington Yard, which is on the same property tract. The bar acts as a spillover for Covington Yard, which can experience an influx of patrons during the summer months.
The Covington Business Council helped unveil the interior of The Firehouse during its most recent Hard Hat Tour Thursday.
Tori Meeker, an event director and brand consultant with Cincinnati-based Gorilla Cinema Presents, said the building was Covington’s second-oldest firehouse. Gorilla Cinema Presents worked as the project’s designer, which she said took around two years to complete.
“I think they saw an opportunity to revitalize a beautiful piece of Covington history, and they wanted to make sure that it was done justice,” Meeker told LINK nky. “I think they did a pretty good job.”
The interior of the building was completely stripped down and renovated, including the addition of new flooring and repairs to the roof. The new interior features an exposed brick facade, a full bar, an outdoor patio area, multiple couches and seating areas and a red neon sign that reads ‘Find Your Fire’ — an homage to the building’s previous life as a fire station.
James Hunt Construction, the project’s contractor, tried to preserve as much of the original fire station as possible. Much of the brick is original, and many wood pieces were reclaimed and retrofitted into the space.
“We kept a lot of the old pieces,” Meeker said. “All of this wood is reclaimed from the original building. The bricks – 98% were here before, but we’re still able to find really cool ways to honor the history while tying it to Covington Yard.”
A large garage door was installed facing Greenup Street, allowing outside air to travel through the event space.
“I love this front view,” Meeker said. “It’s just beautiful, and it’s kind of the showpiece of the building.”
When perusing The Firehouse’s drink menu, patrons will see several two-ounce pours of bourbon ranging in price from $8 to $125. The menu features rarer bourbons such as Stagg Barrel Proof Unlimited, E.H. Taylor Straight Rye and Blanton’s S.F.T.B.
The Firehouse did a soft opening during St. Patrick’s Day weekend. Since then, the bar has been open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. During the week, the business focuses on hosting private events.
Meeker said the bar plans to host more wedding receptions and welcome parties in the future. The maximum number of occupants is 130, she said.
One of the building’s upstairs floors will serve as office space for the commercial real estate agency CURO BRKG. The building is owned by real estate developer Josh Niederhelman, who is also a principal broker for CURO BRKG.
Pat Parshall, a Latonia native and Hard Hat Tour participant, said it was incredible to see the building’s transformation come to light.
“This is like crazy, who would have ever thought,” he said. “The second oldest firehouse in Covington. That’s saying how long it’s been around. Just to see what’s going on down here – what will be going on down here on Fourth Street for the next five-plus years and just the transformation in Covington is pretty cool.”
