CINCINNATI -- This week, MadTree Brewing Company revealed expansion plans, sharing details of a new $18 million brewery, taproom and event center that will be located inside the former RockTenn factory at 3301 Madison Road in Oakley.
The move will not only expand the retail and dining space, it also will nearly triple the company's beer-making and canning capabilities. The plan is an ambitious one for brewers Kenny McNutt, Brady Duncan and Jeff Hunt, who opened MadTree's Kennedy Avenue facility in 2013.
Here are five things we learned about what the brewery has dubbed "MadTree 2.0."
Project Timeline
MadTree was registered on Jan. 4 as owners of the factory built in the 1940s, according to the Hamilton County auditor's website. McNutt said partial demolition of the property should begin in February. Only the colored portions inside the yellow wedge of the photo above will remain. McNutt hopes remodeling will take only seven months. MadTree 2.0 could be open by the fall if there are no delays in construction.
What Remains
One of the largest portions of the facility to remain fully intact will be the former airplane hangar. The hangar will house MadTree's 100-barrel brewhouse and an expanded quality laboratory. McNutt plans to install a second-story catwalk so visitors can look down at the beer-making process. Large windows also will be installed on the Madison Road-facing side of the hanger.
A Venue with a View
As preliminary blueprints indicate, the new brewery will be a welcome change along Madison Road in general. Street-facing factory windows long bricked up will be reopened once construction is complete. Neighbors at Oakley Station and Crossroads Church should have a nice view of MadTree's beer garden on the other side, along with the brewhouse.
Inside Out
A portion of the beer garden will be outdoors. Exterior walls with new windows will be the only structures left standing in the area depicted at the top of the blueprint above. Visitors can enjoy a pint seated next to trees and shrubbery under open skies once the roof is removed.
Eat Up and Meet Up
Catch-A-Fire Pizza will have a kitchen in MadTree's new digs. Folks will be able to eat in the beer garden, as well as in the covered dining areas and small event center in a separate portion of the facility.
