Excellence on Main Award

[click image to view larger]

Bivouac Cellars

Award: Bricks & Mortar Rehabilitation

Year: 2024

City: Chelan

The Brick & Mortar Award is an award that recognizes building owners or projects that positively impact preservation efforts. Bivouac Cellars has been named the 2024 Brick & Mortar Award recipient for its outstanding preservation efforts and creative use of commercial space.

Living in Europe more than 25 years ago as army lieutenants, Kris and Kevin Smith experienced the magic created when wine is shared with good company and beautiful spaces. Deployed in faraway places, bivouacked under the stars, they dreamed of someday creating their own magical space. Cut to 2023, when Kris and Kevin sought to open their own wine tasting room in the midst of Chelan’s already well-established wine industry and in the face of downtown Chelan’s lack of available square footage.

Undeterred, and determined to locate in the heart of downtown, Kris and Kevin worked closely with the owners of a downtown restaurant to lease and renovate the building’s basement, navigating both the city permitting process and liquor control requirements. Because the basement was to be a separate business serving alcohol, they couldn’t use the restaurant entrance, so Kris and Kevin pivoted to develop the alley entrance and leaned into the “speakeasy” theme. They also worked to preserve the interior of the building, making use of the basement’s historic features—leaving the large wood beams exposed, framing the space’s unique alcove seating.

“Bivouac Cellars has added a taste of Chelan’s wine industry in the heart of downtown,” noted Washington State Main Street Program Director Breanne Durham at the Excellence on Main ceremony. “It has also sparked possibility for other nooks and crannies—in Chelan and beyond—that could be activated to create more interest and viability in historic buildings.”