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Olympia Brewery Finds a Buyer

Olympia Brewery in Tumwater, Washington has been fallow since 2003, when Miller Brewing shut it down. The following year they sold it to a startup who planning on bottling water at the former brewery. But they ran into financial trouble and were forced into an involuntary bankruptcy. A deal has now been submitted for approval by the bankruptcy court for a Seattle company, the Benaroya Company, to purchase the brewery for $45 million. A hearing will be held July 5 at which time motions will be heard and a decision made. So far, there’s no word as to Benaroya’s intentions for the property, whether they want to refurbish and open the brewery or raze the 120-acres and develop it. It would be nice to see open again as a brewery, but I doubt that’s what will happen. It’s possible that Benaroya could break up the land into pieces and someone could buy the brewery grounds while they develop the rest into something else, it just doesn’t seem likely that buyer will step forward with the resources to bring the brewery back into shape. I’d certainly like to see it saved, for no better reason than the last time I was there was on my honeymoon.

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