EDGEWATER — Virtually nothing was spared when a kitchen fire consumed The Pumping Company, 6157 N. Broadway, early Tuesday morning.
No one was hurt in the fire, but its toll on the bar was devastating: shattered glassware, melted appliances, flooded bathrooms and more. Two upstairs apartments also suffered severe smoke damage.
But where board-up crews saw a disaster Tuesday, Matt Keslar saw a clean slate.
"It's a pretty old building, so this gives us an opportunity to build the place out a little bit, make it a little nicer" said Keslar, the bar's general manager.
Predicting a "total gut-job," Keslar foresaw re-opening The Pumping Company with a redesigned facade, modern bathrooms and full accessibility to people with disabilities.
"The neighborhood's really been coming up the past couple years, so we ought to be changing with it," he said.
Depending on how fast Keslar's insurance company acts, he said, he hopes to complete the renovation and be ready for new customers within "six or eight weeks."
The Pumping Company has a deep-rooted reputation as a go-to bar for Loyola University students, but Keslar said he hopes the transition will help realize the vision of a "neighborhood-oriented restaurant" he brought when he took over in 2007.
"You don't spend nine years pouring time and effort into something just to give up on it," he added. "We're not going anywhere."
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