A local development team, The Beale Group, that stresses collaboration and synergy partners hopes to convert the former Round Table Pizza building into a collective of food purveyors, event center and co-worker spaces. Owner Gregory Beale ha
Empty pizza house may have a unique future ahead of it
Prior to the coronavirus-caused economic shutdowns that started almost eight months ago, downtown Sebastopol was already seeing a scattering of retail business closures and storefront vacancies. The COVID-19 pandemic has walloped much of the local economy, but it also has made us forget that small town retail here and across America was already under siege by online sales and other non-local forces before 2020.
A Sebastopol Economic Vitality committee of volunteers and city and chamber of commerce leaders had begun looking for answers to what some were calling a “retail apocalypse.” And then COVID-19 hit, closing all sizes of stores from Sears & Roebuck to local shops like Sebastopol’s beloved kitchenware store, Cultivate Home. All across the country, entire shopping malls are closing, and some are being converted to Amazon distribution centers. Local businesses such as restaurants, coffee shops, bars, movie theaters and live music venues are all looking to reinvent themselves with new business models and coronavirus compliant features like curb service and home deliveries.
All this makes 2020 look like the worst-possible time to buy one of downtown Sebastopol’s largest vacant buildings and launch a 22,000 square-foot multi-level food and small retail court, event center and co-working space. But it’s too late to tell that to Gregory Beale and his team that are set to soon unveil plans for what he is calling The Livery, a farm-to-coast collective at the former Round Table Pizza building at South Main and Burnett streets.
An early “sneak peek” of Beale’s project is being scheduled for October or November by the city’s Design Review Board.
“We’ve been looking to do this for the last few years and looked at other Sebastopol locations before we landed here,” said Beale, who leads the Sebastopol-based multi-discipline design and construction firm, Thrive Builders.
Beale and his project manager Rebecca Lipski are bringing their cooperative and entrepreneur spirit to the project that will feature shared core services for multiple food outlets and a building redesign that will provide wide open spaces and natural lighting with flexible walls and fixtures to be moved to accommodate shifting needs of Livery partners or special event needs. Space for “pop-ups” and charity events are also being planned.
“We’re not just putting a Band Aid on this,” said Beale. “We started by looking at the first 40 years of this building (It was built in 1983) and now we’re looking to serve the next 40 years and beyond.”
The downtown corner was once the site of a livery, from horse and buggy days. It was later a gas station and auto repair service.
“Local is important to us and we want to attract partners that want to support one another and create a culture where people are passionate about their crafts,” Beale said.
Right now, Beale is allowing his Main Street neighbors Karen and Lucas Martin the use of his covered alcove for extra outside dining for their K&L Bistro. Beale said this is the kind of “synergy” he hopes The Livery project can spread throughout downtown Sebastopol.
“We have to face it. Downtown Sebastopol is not the greatest walking town (because of two state highways and commute traffic),” said Beale. “In some ways our downtown is really struggling.” Mentioning The Barlow a few block away, Beale said his vision is for his farm-to-coast collective to serve local families and not so much the out-of-towners that frequent The Barlow. “The contrast for us is we’re smaller and we’re not going to have tenants. Rather, we are seeking partners and fellow investors.”
Lipski has been completing market research for the project as well as outreach with potential partners. “We don’t want a traditional landlord relationship,” she said. “It will be more like licensing or revenue sharing.”
All the food vendors or chef operations will have their own small kitchens and offer varieties of cuisines without over duplicating one another.
“We might have a bakery that can supply breads to others or a main coffee roaster,” said Beale. “We’re not going to have everyone just making pizza. We’ll have to see what kind of mix we attract.”
The roof level of the building will be developed into a semi-enclosed, open-air food and event center with a capacity for almost 100 people. The second floor already has an outdoor wraparound terrace that the Round Table Pizza owners used to open up for friends to watch the annual Apple Blossom Parade.
Beale and Lipski have had preliminary talks with city planning staff and have been encouraged with their response.
“We hope to open by the summer of 2021 — COVID or not,” said Beale. And, speaking of COVID, Beale said he is designing the building to include many of the features local restaurants are now employing such as outdoor dining, curbside pickup and possibly deliveries.
