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EAST PALESTINE -- Tickets are on sale for a Bourbon tasting event at the former Train Depot Nov. 14.
Barb Herriot, president of the East Palestine Community Improvement Corporation, said the non-profit organization is hosting the event to give people a "Sneak Peek" of the work being done to renovate the depot, and to introduce the new tenant to the public.
Black Diamond Kitchen and Brewery is expected to begin business at the depot on West Taggart Street next year.
The restaurant and taproom will be the first one in northeast Ohio for the Black Diamond Hospitality Group, which has a location in Nelsonville and other areas in the southern part of the state.
The Bourbon Tasting will be open to the public beginning at 4 p.m. on Nov. 14, with tickets on sale until the end of day Nov. 9. Food will be provided by the Community Improvement Corporation.
Tickets are $25 per person and can be purchased online at EPohio.org/blackdiamondtasting/.
Money raised through ticket sales will go back to the Community Improvement Corporation, or CIC, which is still in the process of renovating the depot in preparation for the new brewery.
Herriot said they are about midway through renovations and plan to turn the location over to Black Diamond in February.
As of right now the CIC is putting in insulation and electrical components, with the next steps being drywall and the building of bathrooms and the kitchen.
"They will bring their own equipment after that. We are trying to build the bar and equipment to accommodate their equipment," Herriot said.
Since the site is still considered a construction area, the Tasting Event will mainly be held in a tented area of a newly poured patio on the north side of the building, with guests invited to walk inside a portion of the building to see how the work is progressing and get a feel for the future restaurant.
"We want them to be able to see a good representation of what we have been doing, and we want to get them excited for next year," Herriot said.
The CIC was able to renovate the building using matching grant funding awarded through the Columbiana County Port Authority.
Other funding has come through fund raising efforts and assistance from the village, she added.
"Black Diamond is really excited to be able to come here and be a part of this community so we wanted to give them the opportunity to do that. We want people to come out and enjoy," she said.
Money raised from the event on Nov. 14 will help the CIC continue its economic development efforts in East Palestine.
Herriot said that in addition to the depot work, the organization plans to start a coffee shop community in the plaza downtown.