One of the three late-night spots on Washington Street closed its doors for good over the weekend, and its owners are partnering with Robert Ware — owner of The Ware House hotel, sports bar and lounge down the street — to develop a new entertainment venue on the main downtown corridor.

The Loft, owned by Angela and Quentin Lovins, served its final customers on Sunday night after operating above Borrello’s restaurant at 1306 Washington St. since 2005. They plan to join Ware in renovating vacant space at 1420 Washington St. — which neighbors Ware’s latest business expansion, Shooters bar and pool hall — to create a bar, live music venue and banquet space.

Ware said he is still negotiating the purchase of the building, but expects the deal to be finalized soon and renovations to begin immediately thereafter. The new venue — which at 12,000 square feet will be the largest of all The Ware House complex offerings — is part of a much bigger plan Ware began executing in 2005 with the purchase of his first downtown building.

“The bottom line is we’re looking to attract regional travelers,” he said. “We want to change the dynamic of people from Vicksburg going to Jackson for a night out to people coming from Jackson to Vicksburg. I think we can do that with what we will have to offer here. I think it will become an entertainment destination.”

Ware has purchased five adjacent downtown buildings on the south end of the 1400 block of Washington Street over the past four years, as well as others downtown, and has opened a sports bar, cocktail lounge and 13 hotel rooms and suites.

While Borello’s has a bar, it does not remain open after the restaurant closes. The Ware House complex has resort status, which allows its businesses to serve alcohol 24 hours a day. However, Ware closes the sports bar and lounge at midnight on weekdays and 2 a.m. on weekends, while Shooters is open until 4 a.m. seven days a week. The Biscuit Company bar and restaurant, which opened earlier this year just off Washington Street on Grove Street, also remains open until 2 a.m. on weekends.  

While the yet-to-be-named bar, live music venue and banquet hall at 1420 Washington Street is being renovated, the Lovinses will be helping Ware operate the hotel, sports bar and lounge. Ware will retain ownership of the entire complex and the new venue, which he said will complement all of the properties within The Ware House.

Ware’s ambitions for further expanding The Ware House are anything but modest. The planned work exceeds that done to establish his four properties thus far. Shooters, which opened six weeks ago, is still being renovated. Meanwhile, construction is ongoing to provide additional dining space for the upstairs sports bar, as well as a new 5,000 square-foot wine and piano bar adjacent to the downstairs lounge and five additional hotel rooms.

“Excuse the debris — that’s progress in action,” said Ware as he provided a tour of the ongoing work and outlined his long-term vision for The Ware House, which includes the construction of an outdoor courtyard and pool in the rear of his properties, poolside and patio bars and 22 more hotel rooms.

All of the properties within The Ware House complex are being constructed with interior entry ways, said Ware, allowing customers to go from property to property without having to exit the complex. 

Ware said the expansions of the sports bar and Shooters should be complete by mid- to late summer, while the new venture at 1420 Washington St. should come to fruition by the fall and the wine bar by the winter holiday season. He hopes to have the pool, patio bar and volleyball nets up by next summer.

While Ware prefers not to discuss his total investment in the complex beyond calling it “substantial,” he maintains the important aspect of his out-of-pocket costs is the fact that he firmly believes it can all be recouped and then some.

“We have done a great job of mitigating our costs thus far. Our numbers have consistently grown, and I think Vicksburg is ripe for continued growth along Washington Street,” he said. “Our business plan works, and I think the income potential is also there for others to develop downtown businesses and offset their costs.”

Angela Lovins, who has worked in the bar and restaurant industry for 15 years and has known Ware since he moved to Vicksburg in 2005, said it was difficult to close The Loft. However, she said the new arrangement with Ware really works to both of their strengths.

“He excels in creating these businesses, and I excel on the operating end,” she said. “He had a need for people to help him who have professional food and beverage experience, and I had a need for a new building.” 

Ware agreed, adding, “We’ve realized we can’t try to manage a complex this big without some quality outside help — and we’re still hiring.”

Harry Sharp, owner of 1306 Washington St., said Tuesday he had not yet been informed of The Loft’s closure. Sharp said he doesn’t know what may become of the soon-to-be vacant space, which boasts one of Washington Street’s most prominent balconies. Sharp said Lovins was operating on a month to month lease, as she had not signed a long-term lease agreement that expired in August. 

“I have had a bunch of people who have been interested in that space, but I don’t know anything about The Loft closing,” said Sharp, who is also chairman of the Vicksburg Main Street Program. “I am excited about there being another venue downtown, if that’s the case.”

The building at 1420 Washington St. was initially home to a Morgan & Lindsey dime store until the 1970s, and it more recently operated as an auction house. The Morgan and Lindsey was built on the site after the 1954 tornado destroyed structures then on the site.

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Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com