"Nee Haw Peterborough!"

Well I'm delighted to report that an empty business in downtown Peterborough is soon going to be brought back to life. The always evolving venue of Club Vibe is once again getting ready to open it's doors. Club Vibe is a fairly large venue (12,000 square feet) so keeping up attendance has been a challenge in the past. The former owners and organizers often put on all ages events to help fill this vast venue and provide a place for teens to get out and dance. Unfortunately underage drinking and filling the place to capacity have proved difficult in the past. Frankly, the flavour of the vibe wasn't anything new or exciting. Downtown Peterborough already has it's share of dance venues.
Restoration on the rather dank building is already underway and the new owner hopes to open up "CJ's Country Bar" in 6 to 8 weeks. Just in time for a Cowboy Christmas I hope!
During an interview in the local paper the new owner said..."The main bar area is 5,000 square feet and you can’t walk on it without stepping on a piece of gum. It’s that dirty. I’m doing an extensive renovation."

"Ideally I need to modernize the outside of the building. It’s an eye-sore in the downtown core," he said. "It will be repainted. I’m putting in new doors. Believe it or not there is black marble on the front of that building and I want to polish it and utilize some of the original architecture of the building."

I think it's awesome that this guy isn't just slapping up a coat of paint and hiring a coat check girl/guy. He sounds like he's going to give the old building the respect it deserves. It's seen alot of ugliness over the years.

Originally the Club Vibe building was one of Peterborough's local cinemas. If memory serves it housed two theatres, the main one on the first floor and a smaller one upstairs. I think it was the Paramount? I remember sneaking in to the upstairs theatre to watch that racy film "Grease", even though I'd paid to see something rated PG on the main floor. Good times! But enough about me and how I use to spend my $2.00 allowance.
This time around the new owner is proposing a Country Music Bar for the space. I love it. Diversity in the downtown core! We really don't need another place that plays bass laden music with monosyllabic lyrics. Sure those places have their merits but Peterborough needs an alternative and I'm pretty excited that someone is stepping up to the plate. Or moseying up to the bar...so to speak and making the investment. Clearly the country music scene has become increasingly popular over the past few years. People 18 to 35 years of age are really starting to dig the scene. It may not be everyones cup of sarsaparilla but I hope it's going to be a big hit. It's hard to see such a large store front remain empty in our downtown. It's also hard to think of all that wasted gum ground into it's dance floor.
Mr. Bob's update - due to drug charges their liquor license has been revoked. Though the restaurant remains open we're not yet sure if a dry venue will be able to survive. Maybe as a breakfast/lunch place like the Queensway restaurant? Time will tell.
Hopefully CJ's can fill the void by providing a natural way to "Stay High". Heck! I might even dust off my 10 gallon hat!
Don't fret haters I'll be back with a rant soon.
B-spot in the chilly North!