The last of equipment from the former Rogue Ales & Spirits brewery sits in the parking lot in South Beach ready to be hauled away after being auctioned off in bankruptcy last month. (Shayla Escudero/Lincoln Chronicle)By SHAYLA ESCUDERO/Lincoln Chronicle
Five months after abruptly closing all its operations, Rogue Ales and Spirits is still buttoning up its South Beach headquarters and moving out – later than its landlord would like.
After seeing its beer sales tank and racking up hundreds of thousands of dollars in rent and back taxes, Oregon’s third largest craft brewery ceased all operations last November, closing a chapter on the 37-year-old company and putting approximately 47 workers in Newport out of a job.
The 47,000-square-foot South Beach facility held a brewery, warehouse, and restaurant. It was the site where the company’s beers, ales and spirits are produced before they make their way to distributors in 50 states and more than 50 countries. Ten days after its closure, Rogue’s parent company, Oregon Brewing Company filed a voluntary petition for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in federal court, outlining that it had $4.9 million in assets and $16.7 million in liabilities.
Among Rogue’s assets include 1,300 barrels of aging whiskey worth $2.8 million, the filing said, $1 million worth of hops, grain and other brewing ingredients, more than $614,000 in packaging and labels and more than $692,000 in labeled and bottled beverages.
Equipment from the former Rogue Ales & Spirits operation in South Beach is loaded onto trailers headed to their new owners after a bankruptcy auction. (Photo courtesy of Carol Shenk)Many items, including bottles are still in the building, forcing a longer wait time until the Port of Newport can find a new purpose for the building, said executive director Paula Miranda. Originally, Rogue was supposed to have all of its equipment and items removed by the end of March, but it will take at least another month for Rogue to remove what is left, Miranda told the Lincoln Chronicle.
“We are working with our bankruptcy attorney who is working with the bankruptcy trust to figure out how to proceed,” Miranda said.
“Meanwhile, we have been talking to a lot of our community partners to figure out the best and highest use for the building instead of just trying to bring in someone in without taking into consideration how that would affect our community,” Miranda said. “Until we are able to get in the building without all of Rogue’s stuff and see the condition of the building, it’s really hard to figure that out.”
On the outside of the building, change is apparent. Most of the large stainless steel brewing equipment was auctioned off last month and moved. But there is still some equipment in the parking lot waiting to be hauled off.
Miranda isn’t sure who will inhabit the building next, but said the Port is considering a feasibility study to identify the best use of the space, which will likely be discussed at future Port of Newport commission meetings.
- Shayla Escudero covers Lincoln County government, education, Newport, housing and social services for Lincoln Chronicle and can be reached at [email protected]
If you waste time watching judge Judy like I do, you know that when a tenant moves out but leaves their stuff behind, they technically are still in the premises and should be charged rent. So I hope Rogue is running up a rent bill until every last bit of its stuff is out of Port property. At least the port should try and recoup such rent during the bankruptcy proceedings.
They should put an indoor soccer field inside the tallest portion of the building. It was part of Rogue’s expansion of the Port facilities and would provide year round opportunities to stay active and create rec leagues in order to bring about more community wide relationships. They shouldn’t expect to find a single tenant to occupy that entire footprint but instead multiple.
Since it’s in the port, isn’t the use supposed to be related to marine use? I had the impression that Rogue got a pass on that requirement but that generally, any business leasing space in that part of the port, had to be marine related.
I would love to see an organized flea market/ farmers market in the building with the restaurant going it would be a nice vocal point year around.
omg, the last thing we need is another flea market ugh! or another thrift store, think of something that might draw people here or something you could do inside or indoor markets, places to eat, a bowling alley, anything fun.
I agree
Rogue was such an iconic space. A flea market for all Newport and surrounding areas would be a great asset to the community.
Dividing the cost of this large epic building. Or, even spaces like an indoor fair, all year long…
I don’t see how something like a flea market would come close to paying the rent the port needs.