OLCC eases access for under-21 crowd

The recent approval of all-ages shows in bars and other 21-and-up establishments.
By Scott Younker, special to the Villard Street Pub's blog

Recently the Oregon Liquor Control Commission changed a ruling that barred minors from attending concerts, comedy shows, and various other acts in bars or establishments that sold alcohol. While many local Eugene pubs and bars are going to continue with the ban several, potentially including the Villard Street Pub, are among those that will allow those of us who are under twenty-one in for shows. I strongly agree with this ruling.

What makes the ruling a good thing is that now I have even more options to see shows that I've been unable to see before. Once establishments make it past the transitory stage of implementing this ruling music, comedy, and play lovers alike will definitely benefit from it.

Being twenty myself, there are many shows that I've missed because they were in bars in downtown Portland. For example, I am a huge fan of comedy, but most comedians who go through Portland aren't drawing crowds into the Rose Garden or the Memorial Amphitheater. Instead, they tend to go through the bars. The Crystal Ballroom is just one example. Brian Regan and Lewis Black are just a couple of comedians that I have been unable to see because of the location of their shows. These guys pack people in, but they're not Chris Rock or Robin Williams selling out shows in huge theaters or stadiums.

The worst is for those of us who follow local and territory bands. They almost always only do bar shows. Imagine being under-age and trying to see Pink Martini when they were first coming up in the Portland scene but being unable to do so. It's better in Eugene though.

The McDonald theater has a bar separated from the actual stage and is well guarded to keep minors out. They also get bigger name bands to perform there. Last month the alt rock band 3 Doors Down had two shows there and I saw Flogging Molly in the fall of 2006 there. They also get the smaller local and territory bands to perform there. My favorite cover band, Hells Belles, had a show there last fall, and a band from my hometown, Beaverton, opened for them (in an aside: check out Western Aerial if you like alt rock with a heavier sound). Pink Martini has also performed at the McDonald theater, although you're more likely to see them at the Hult Center these days.

Now, I am not gung-ho about seeing local bands. Trolling locals for a good sound takes a little more energy than I'm willing to put in. However, for those who do like it, the Wow Hall is the best venue in Eugene to get that local flavor. I have several friends who enjoy underground rap, and the Wow Hall gets most of the local solo artists and groups.

The last place that I'll mention for "good" music in Eugene is actually right off the UO campus. The Campbell Club usually has a concert on Friday nights during the school year. My freshman year at the UO, it had a pretty cool concert that featured several rap artists from outside the Eugene area, including one who came from New Mexico. It's easy to get into, and is generally overcrowded, but if you work past all that there are some decent shows there.

Here Comes the Neighborhood

How the Crescent Village vision will transform northeast Eugene, and maybe even local ecological standards
By Aaron Ragan-Fore
(This story first appeared in Eugene Magazine.)

Eugene's eclectic neighborhoods offer a wide range of distinctive housing options, from the stately Victorians of College Hill, to the charming cottages of Whiteaker, to the midcentury ranch homes on the west side of town. The city’s diverse housing market is a testament to the different drumbeats that Eugeneans follow.

And when John Musumeci, vice-president of the family-owned Arlie & Company developers, looks at northeast Eugene specifically at the triangle formed by Coburg Road, Game Farm Road and the Beltline—he sees an opportunity to celebrate and enhance that spirit of non-conformity. Ironically, he wants to do it through the construction of a housing development.

Arlie & Company’s new 40-acre Crescent Village, situated just north of Costco on Crescent Avenue off Coburg Road, is doing its best to buck the cookie-cutter image of planned communities. Billing itself as “Eugene’s Urban Village,” the complex is treading the line between maintaining a distinct style and pace, and integrating with surrounding neighborhoods.

It took 31⁄2 years to refine this multifaceted vision from its initial inception. Musumeci had guessed it wouldn’t be completed until around 2012. But interest from Eugene businesses and prospective tenants has been keen, he says: “We’re kind of being pushed by the marketplace to go faster.” Musumeci now sees the project completed in three or four years.

The seed of the community, says Musumeci, was the result of one simple question: “Can you do a project that would make everyone happy?” Though Musumeci is referring more to the bankers who hold the district’s purse strings and to the neighborhood association that holds its heart strings, he might just as well expect an affirmative answer from his prospective tenants: When completed, the Crescent Village community’s 600 housing units will feature multiple housing options, including apartments, condominiums, tandem row houses, even free-standing, three-story townhomes.

Throughout the development, personal taste is paramount. The 102 apartments feature 36 different floor plans. The 64 townhomes and row houses on the development’s east side boast twelve model variations.

Read the rest of the story on Aaron's Web site!

Oregon Microbrew and Wine Fest Poster is Ready!

The Villard Street Pub will be the setting for the Oregon Microbrew and Wine Fest this summer. Isn't the poster be-yoo-ti-ful?

Oregon produces more microbrews- from KVAL and the Associated Press

By Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) - Oregon craft brewing production keeps bubbling over.

Figures released Thursday, April 24, by the Oregon Brewers Guild show production across the state grew at a rate of 8.1 percent last year.

Total beer production for the state was about 860,000 barrels, or 285 million bottles of beer. That's an increase of more than 64,000 barrels from the 796,000 barrels in 2006.

The industry posted strong growth despite increases in hop and barley prices, the two main ingredients in craft beer.

Portland has 32 microbreweries within its city limits, more than any other city in the world. And Oregon boasts 64 brewing companies statewide.

(Originally published on KVAL.com.)

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)