4257 N. Lincoln Ave

4257 N. Lincoln will semi-officially be the new home of Half Acre Beer Co. We made it over the community meeting hurdle, so that’s big. This meeting was the opportunity for the community to come out and express concerns, ask questions and learn a bit more about what it is we would like to do with the space. The concerns all fell into basic categories: Are you opening a bar? Will you be blocking streets and alleys with large trucks? Will there be odor that will make my life hell? Will you bring the riff-raff? We had acceptable responses and won the vote. In the end we had only one vote against the project – that was from the one self-pronounced beer advocate. We offered attendants some beer on their way out, and I’m not positive, but I think he grabbed one.

So, off we go to the zoning commission for, we hope, the final zoning approval. All this is very exciting for us. Our new brewhouse arrives at the end of September, so our biggest goal is to have the space prepared enough so that it can receive it and not have to move it later. This stuff is big and heavy.

We’ve been hearing from a lot of people who have offered to lend a hand. Thanks to all of you. It would be great to have all of you helping us achieve our goals, scurrying about the city with blueprints, jack-hammering floors, leveling fermentation vessels, etc. We’ve been thinking of how to accept help, so if we’ve received a note from you, be on notice, the call could come – maybe in the middle of the night.

In the meantime, the summer pushes on. It’s been ungodly hot in our current 4th floor hideout. Our intern looks like Christian Bale in The Machinist, but he continues to get it done four days a week.

And speaking of….. Our intern, Chris, is a tech-savvy student at Columbia. He put a “Widget” on our Myspace page. This widget will make it easier for you to stay in touch with what’s going on with Half Acre Beer Co. You can go grab this widget and easily install it on your IGoole home page, your own Myspace or other places that people do these sorts of things. Frankly it’s over my head, but those of you who are more tech-savvy, are, I’m sure, more familiar with the world of “Widget,” and how they get information closer to your fingertips.

So, there it is, 13,000 sq ft of brewery space and a widget. Isn’t that something?

Gabriel
Half Acre Beer Co
Chicago, IL