Ginger’s LLC will be opening a new bar in place of Beck’s on College Hill, which celebrated its last night in business on Aug. 20 after 10 years.

The new bar will not serve as a new location of Ginger’s Pub, but will instead be a completely new brand.

The original Ginger’s was severely damaged while firefighters were putting out the fire that destroyed Great Wall Chinese Restaurant this past April.  

Darin Beck, CEO of Barmuda Companies, accepted an offer to end his lease early on the property that housed Beck’s, which was previously set to expire in 16 months.

“The lease was set to expire at the end of next year. We were at a point where we felt very strongly that the building needed a remodel,” Beck said, adding that Ginger’s had already planned to take over the lease once it expired.

“We may try to relocate and open a new Beck’s location in Cedar Falls. We would love to stay on the hill […] There’s just no real estate,” Beck said.  

Ginger’s LLC will be opening a new bar in place of Beck’s on College Hill, which celebrated its last night in business after 10 years on Aug. 20. The new bar will not serve as a new location of Ginger’s Pub, but will instead be a completely new bar. The original Ginger’s was severely damaged while firefighters were putting out the fire that destroyed Great Wall Chinese Restaurant this past April.  

Darin Beck, CEO of Barmuda Companies, accepted an offer to end his lease early on the property that housed Beck’s, which was previously set to expire in 16 months.

“The lease was set to expire at the end of next year. We were at a point where we felt very strongly that the building needed a remodel,” Beck said, adding that Ginger’s had already planned to take over the lease once it expired.

“We may try to relocate and open a new Beck’s location in Cedar Falls. We would love to stay on the hill […] There’s just no real estate,” Beck said.  

Ginger’s took possession of the venue on Aug. 24 and will further begin planning the details of what exactly will be moving into the space.

“We will try to utilize that building […] for something that would make more sense for that, rather than trying to fit everything that Ginger’s is into that small space,” Kyle Dehmlow, Ginger’s operator, said.

Ginger’s offered amenities such as a stage for live music and a patio – things that the new location wouldn’t be able to offer.

“We have a pretty good idea of what’s going to go in there and how we are going to do it, but right now we need to get a few things straight as far as a timeline when we think we could open,” Dehmlow said.

Dehmlow said that he would like to possibly re-open Ginger’s at its original location at some point, but that there are many obstacles to face before that can happen. He mentioned that even though Ginger’s looks fine from the outside, the inside is a different story.

“When it rains, water continues to get in, getting things wet and then drying up, and [there’s] no air flow,” Dehmlow said. “There was damage before, but it continues to add to the damage.”

Although no official announcement has been made yet regarding what will exactly be replacing Beck’s, some students are excited about the change that will be coming to the Hill.

Danielle Massey, junior economics and human resources major, was one such student, saying that she was looking forward to the changes the new venue would bring to College Hill.

“I’m excited for some new business on the Hill,” Massey said. “With the current variety of existing bars in that area, I’m curious to see how this new addition can complement them.”

“I’ve never been a huge fan of the weekend bar scene, but I will definitely miss the underrated boneless wings at Beck’s,” Meredith Miller, junior public relations major, said.

“I’m excited to see if the new bar will serve food and what kind of menu it will bring, and how it will affect College Hill in the future.”

Despite leaving his location on the Hill, Beck also expressed excitement over the new changes this move will bring about.

“I do think the chemistry of the Hill will definitely change without Beck’s,” Beck said. “I would’ve liked to have seen what we could’ve done by re-investing on our 10-year anniversary, and if we’d had another five-year lease we would’ve done that. The good news for the Hill is that Kyle and his group are going to do that […] It will affect the overall culture of the Hill, and it will be interesting to see what they do with it.”