As it approaches the final week of presenting live music shows at its current National Avenue location, Lexington music venue Cosmic Charlie’s has solidified plans for its new home.
Owners Mark Evans and John Tresaloni have completed a lease agreement for 105 West Loudon Avenue, a building on a five-acre campus at the corner of West Loudon Avenue and North Limestone formerly owned by the Lexington Transit Authority.
Developer Chad Needham purchased the property and its buildings in late January. Contingent on securing an active reuse overlay to the current B4 zoning, a 65,000-square-foot building—constructed in 1928 and the one-time headquarters of Southeast Greyhound Lines—will be reimagined as GreyLine Station & Market.
The adaptive reuse project is designed to include office and event space, as well as restaurants, retail and an urban market operated and programmed by the NoLi CDC, which also plans to move its offices into the building.
Cosmic Charlie’s will be located in a stand-alone, 5,000-square-foot building formerly used by Lextran as a bus-washing facility. The facility is situated between the much larger GreyLine Station building and another 11,000-square-foot building that was used by Lextran as a maintenance and repair garage. That building will house the Building Institute of Central Kentucky, a trade school operated by the Building Industry Association.
lextran bus mural
The future home of Cosmic Charlie's was built in 2008 and is constructed of solid concrete, with large bay doors at either end. It’s currently adorned with a large transit-themed mural created by artists Mike and Jenny Luckett as part of the Lexington Mural Project.
Evans said plans for the new venue include constructing a mezzanine above the main floor, as well as a new stage that’s similar in size and setup as the one at its National Avenue location. He and Tresaloni are planning for five different height levels in all, allowing for open sight lines throughout the venue.
The space will also allow for a slightly larger capacity than the National Avenue location—in excess of 400 people as compared to 350 currently, Evans said.
“There aren’t many bells and whistles, but it’s perfect for a rock ‘n’ roll club." —Mark Evans
“There aren’t many bells and whistles, but it’s perfect for a rock ‘n’ roll club,” he said.
“It’s a big, cavernous space that I think will suit them quite well,” said Needham, who has purchased and renovated numerous properties in the North Limestone neighborhood. “It fills a need for us, too, in bringing a nighttime destination to what is going to be a hub of activity.”
“Hopefully the noise will not be an issue for them,” Needham said. “I think they will be very well received.”
After moving from its original location on Woodland Avenue to National Avenue in October 2016, Cosmic Charlie's announced plans in March of this year to again relocate, following months of noise complaints from residents in the neighboring Mentelle neighborhood.
Evans said he and Tresaloni hope to open the new Cosmic Charlie’s in September. Meanwhile, the band of Montreal will return to Cosmic Charlie's on June 15 for the venue's final show in its current location. Vectortone Presents, the booking agency owned by Evans, is also working to locate subsequent shows to The Green Lantern and other local venues.
Said Evans: “We were in a bind because we had to get out so quickly due to the issues with the neighborhood, but it has ended up being a blessing in disguise.”