The quaint Mason Bar in Uptown Dallas will close to be razed for a residential high-rise. They will say farewell with a grand finale event on October 18.
Mason Bar opened in 2012 with former Green Room owner Brandt Wood at the helm, as a casual neighborhood spot with Cajun food and brick-walled atmosphere. Although it never thrived as a restaurant-bar, it became an extremely popular place for parties and private events.
Mason Bar owner Martin Corboy said that he and other businesses nearby were informed by the landlord, Greenway Investment, that they'd need to vacate the premises in October, to make room for new residential construction.
Greenway is affiliated with Alamo Manhattan LLC, the company that has built other Uptown developments such as Routh Street Flats and the Monaco at 3003 Carlisle St.
According to a flyer on Greenway's website, the site will have "multiple retail leasing opportunities from 860 to 3,850 square feet."
Neither Greenway nor Alamo Manhattan responded to requests for comment, but a map attached to the flyer shows that the property will take up a large portion of the block along Boll, extending from Guillot to Colby Streets. Businesses on Boll Street such as Spiral Fitness and Salon 2122 have relocated, and the address at 2106 Boll St. previously occupied by Spiral Fitness is now owned by Alamo Manhattan.
Aside from its character and charm, the Mason Bar building has a unique history. It was first built as a church in 1937, and was a Masonic lodge in the 1950s. For a number of years, it served as a studio and residence for eccentric artist James Sasso. More recently, the space was home to restaurants such as Rosebud Wine Bistro and Angela's Bistro 51; it was vacant from 2009 until the Mason Bar moved in.
Corboy says that the staff was convinced the place had ghosts.
"Every person who has worked there swears to a man that it's haunted," he says. "If you interviewed any of the former managers there, they'd tell you they were afraid to go into the basement at night. One quit because she swore she saw a ghost there. She said, 'I can’t close there at night.' "It was a cool building. But we knew when we signed the lease that this could happen."
The timing seems unfortunate, given the recent controversy over the destruction of a century-old building in downtown Dallas.
The Mason Bar in Uptown Dallas is in another vintage building that will be razed.
