Salud! is owned by two married couples, Gerald and Yolanda Taylor and Tony and Raechill Dotson, who had a vision for a business that would provide their fellow community members with opportunities to spend time together, learn, and create friendships. Wine enthusiasts all, they developed a plan for a wine bar that is equal parts tasting room, meeting space, event venue, and wine storage facility where people can store their own wine in temperature controlled spaces.

Before opening their business, the Taylors and the Dotsons tackled an adaptive building reuse of grand proportions. The building in downtown Camas was long home to Sears, and when the store closed its doors in 2016, it was unclear what new use the large, open space would hold. The building was certainly large enough for the various uses Salud!’s owners had in mind, but creating the intimate environment suitable for the wine bar and meeting spaces took a great deal of remodeling, much of which was done by the Taylors and Dotsons themselves. They exposed old beams, put up walls, and built a wine storage area complete with street signs, such as “Chardonnay Way,” along a Main Street corridor.

Salud! opened its doors in August 2017 and has since brought thousands of people to downtown Camas. In addition to opening their meeting space to nonprofit organizations and other groups, Salud! hosts many of their own events, including chef dinners, murder mystery parties, movie nights, a 1980s-themed prom, and more. They often partner with fellow entrepreneurs to bring people to downtown Camas for more than just their own destination business. Collaboration and cross-promotional advertising with Salud! has benefited the historic Liberty Theatre, the Camas Hotel, as well as nearby food and beverage establishments. The Taylors and the Dotsons are handily accomplishing their goals of bringing the community together through their business.

Communities everywhere are struggling with reuse of historic buildings originally suited for department stores. Salud! represents the innovative spirit of Main Street: adaptive, creative, and rooted in bringing people together.