It’s safe to say that craft beer is having a moment on Long Island. In 2018, six new breweries opened taprooms. This brings the total number of breweries with taprooms to 35, compared to nine at the end of 2012. That is a major increase and we don’t see the rise slowing down anytime soon.
Long Island Breweries Creating New Spaces to Meet Demands
Besides the new breweries, many older breweries expanded their production and taprooms in 2018 to keep up with demand.
In Suffolk County, Blue Point Brewing in Patchogue is expanding.
Long Island’s largest craft brewery began production last July at its new 60,000-square-foot facility on West Main Street. It plans to open a new tasting room and outdoor beer garden this year.
In Nassau County, Long Beach Brewing and Flying Belgian Brewery have started construction on a new brewery and tap room. They will share the space in Oceanside, with plans to open in the spring.
Bright Eye Beer Company, formerly Point Lookout Brewing, has signed a lease for a 5,000-square-foot space on Park Avenue in Long Beach across from the LIRR station. The new brewery will feature a 15-barrel brew house and a taproom, with plans to open in late summer.
New Breweries & Demand For Commercial Real Estate Space
With each of these new breweries and taprooms comes the demand for commercial real estate space to house them. Many breweries are a hybrid of industrial manufacturing needs and retail needs.
This results in the brewery and tasting room combination.
Breweries Face Strict Regulations on Commercial Spaces
Keeping in mind that brewing is an industrial trade, city and town regulations often restrict breweries to industrial-zoned buildings. These restrictions need specific features such as floor drains, proper ventilation, concrete floors at least 4 inches thick, and more.
As most spaces are industrial or retail, these features may need to be altered to standard commercial spaces.
Making these required alterations often involves large changes to the physical location, such as adding structural support, sloping in the floors, adding water-resistant finishes, or re-hauling the plumbing, etc.
Ensuring a Good Match for Landlords & Brewery Tenants
One of the most important keys to success for landlords and brewery tenants is to be a good match.
With the beverage industry soaring on a national scale, a Minnesota CRE firm called Craft Buildings has announced its launch into the U.S. market.
Craft Buildings will work with craft beverage manufacturing companies, including breweries, cideries, wineries and distilleries. They will provide guidance through the process of locating, and securing a commercial building suitable for their business.
This is a very interesting business model that will help the process for brewery tenants.
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