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Times changing for downtown blues club

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The iconic Times Change(d) High and Lonesome Club is entering a new era.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 27/03/2016 (3834 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The iconic Times Change(d) High and Lonesome Club is entering a new era.

A post on the popular downtown blues club’s Facebook page on Saturday announced the club’s ownership in partnership with John Pollard, co-CEO of Pollard Banknote, will “take possession of the Fortune Block” in the 200 block of Main Street on April 5.

“The building will be undergoing a major restoration including a very cool and much-needed expansion of the club,” the Facebook post stated. “Culture not Condos, friends. We did it!”

RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES
The Times Change(d) High and Lonesome club on Main Street is set to undergo a restoration.
RUTH BONNEVILLE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS FILES The Times Change(d) High and Lonesome club on Main Street is set to undergo a restoration.

The post also invites anyone to attend the club on April 9 for the album release part for James Culleton’s Vanished Days album from 7 to 9 p.m. and for the later evening performance of The Perpetrators and special guests.

In a Free Press story in January, Pollard said he had put in an offer in early January to buy the MacDonald Building at 226 Main St., and two months earlier had submitted an offer to purchase the Fortune Building next door.

John Scoles, owner of the Times Change(d) High and Lonesome Club, which has occupied the first floor of the 10,000-square-foot Fortune Building for nearly 30 years, told the Free Press he appreciates having somebody of Pollard’s stature in his corner. Scoles said he couldn’t comment on the purchase until after the April 5 possession date.

Pollard did not release the dollar amount of his offers but told the Free Press in January he estimated it would likely cost between $1 million and $2 million to overhaul the Fortune Building and a similar amount for the MacDonald Building.

“You can’t do much for less than $100 per square foot. We’re hoping it works out to be a decent investment,” he said.

— with files from Geoff Kirbyson

History

Updated on Sunday, March 27, 2016 5:54 PM CDT: Updates with writethru

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