Brock MarchantLogan • There’s good news for drinkers in Cache Valley — a new bar could soon be headed your way.
Last week, the Logan City Council approved a zoning change to allow for a new watering hole at 185 E. Cache Valley Blvd., near the city’s new Target.
The location means the new bar would boldly go where no bar has gone before — miles north of Logan’s city center.
According to Tony Johnson, the Logan developer who asked for the rezone, that’s part of the project’s appeal.
“By locating a bar here, we now don’t have them all concentrated downtown on Center Street,” he said during a Logan planning commission meeting in May. “There’s a whole part of our community that’s not being served.”
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Tony Johnson in his office, a restored Sinclair gas station, in River Heights. Johnson is looking to open a bar near the north end of Logan.
According to city planner Aimee Egbert, the plan is to close Greek Streak II and open a new bar in its place. Dan Hansen — one of the bar’s future owners (if it opens) has referred to the place as 185 Bar in meetings, though he also jokingly suggested they call it Old Mann Bar, named after a theatre that used to be in the area.
During the City Council meeting last week, Hansen said although the 21-and-up location would focus primarily on drinks, it would also serve bar food — and in a unique way.
Reminiscent of a crab boil, he said owners plan to pour sharable servings of nachos on tables.
“You can just eat, right there, while having your drink,” he said.
Though he said he is a non-drinking member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Hansen explained that he often sees people in the valley lament some of the dull developments that have become commonplace.
“Every time I’m on a forum, it says, ‘Oh great, a bank.’ Or a car wash, or something,” he said. “We’re trying to bring something different. We want to give people a fun and safe environment and options to enjoy an adult night out.”
Though the council members unanimously voted for the bar rezone, they also recognized the difficult steps that still lie ahead for its owners in getting licensed by the state.
Note to readers • This reporting position is a partnership with Utah Public Radio, a division of Utah State University.
I’m Brock Marchant, The Salt Lake Tribune’s Cache Valley reporter in partnership with Utah Public Radio. As a valley native, I’ve seen firsthand the issues that people face everywhere from Richmond to Avon — unaffordable housing, dwindling open space and a rapidly increasing population that has cities struggling to keep up. I want to explore local problems by reporting on the ground, not just quote elected officials and news releases. As residents work diligently to overcome challenges, I want to tell their stories and share their solutions. Smart, hard-working people have built the valley’s history, and I’m certain they will frame its future.
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