Troy Shantz A downtown parking lot would be transformed into a beer garden and community space if a local restaurant owner’s vision becomes reality.
Troy Shantz
A downtown parking lot would be transformed into a beer garden and community space if a local restaurant owner’s vision becomes reality.
The concept Donna Hogan outlined for city council last week would see the lot at Front and George streets become a summertime gathering spot on weekends, anchored by a shipping container retrofitted to serve as a bar.
“It doesn’t look like your typical shipping container. It’s aesthetically pleasing, it’s painted and it’s modified to accommodate the equipment inside,” said Hogan, the owner of Mucho Burrito.
“It’s not what you would typically think of when you think of a shipping container.”
An outdoor beer garden could add to downtown’s revitalization and provide a relaxed alternative to the bar scene, said Hogan, who visiting a similar venue in Midland, Michigan last summer and thought the concept was perfect for the riverside lot.
“There it was literally just in the middle of a parking lot surrounded by three buildings and I thought to myself, ‘Wouldn’t this be pretty awesome to be in Sarnia by the waterfront?’ We have a pretty unique asset with our water,” she said.
“It was family friendly, pet friendly and I felt it was something that Sarnians would definitely embrace.”
City council took the first step on Feb. 27 and called for a staff report on the proposal. Administrators were directed to consult with the public and with adjacent downtown business owners about the Front Street parking lot.
Staff was also asked to consider ways modified shipping containers or kiosks might be employed at other spots on the waterfront to increase its vibrancy.
