SALINAS, Calif. -- The old bank on Main Street and Gabilan in Oldtown Salinas, will soon open as a huge entertainment complex. Its taken the project 5 years to complete but business owners say they wouldn't open up shop anywhere else than in California.
You can't tell from outside of the building, but inside 201 Main St. in Salinas, a big project is underway.
"You've got 2 full bars here," said Jesse Kehoe, property owner, of one floor of the building.
Kehoe took Central Coast News on a tour of the building, which is three floors, 26,000 square feet, and 5 years in the making.
Kehoe said it will be 2 restaurants, 1 nightclub, a wine bar, a coffee bar and a main event room. The main restaurant will be called "Georgios," and will be a fine dining Italian restaurant. The nightclub will be called "Exchange" and will be in the basement. "Exchange" will have a bank theme, using old features of the old bank, such as the bank vault for VIP tables and safety deposit boxes as a backdrop to the bar.
"We've got enough function space that we can hold three weddings at the same time," said Kehoe of the amount of space in the building.
However, since they bought the building in 2001, Kehoe said this dream hasn't always been smooth sailing.
"The existing space, because we had to bring it up to today's code, was a little bit of a nightmare," said Kehoe.
Kehoe has done developments in other states and said when dealing with permits California has a lot more codes than anywhere else. He said cities also have their own restriction, so it can be tricky and complex for businesses to open. But Kehoe said the City of Salinas has been a big help in getting this entertainment complex to open.
"Salinas has improved and they are planning on improving more, and that's always nice to see as a property owner," said Kehoe.
Kehoe said the rewards a business gets for opening up shop in California are bigger than other states. Which is why he's confident that opening up shop at 201 Main, will be gold.
