Building a New Nest

While some bars and clubs in town are crowded, the Bluebird has always given the word an entirely new meaning. Only one entrance, a narrow walkway and terrible women's restrooms have made the Bluebird a not so popular place for some music lovers because of its crowded and stuffy atmosphere.\nFifteen cent draft nights every Wednesday have brought many students to the bar and new bands like The 17th Floor and Hairbangers Ball have made the nightclub as popular as it has ever been in its 30 years of existence.\nSteve Ross, owner of the Bluebird, says the place has always been popular, drawing in students for the drink specials and great bands, but not to the extent that it's currently at.\n"We felt the bands have been drawing more people in here lately," Ross says among sawdust and hammers the day before opening night. "And you get so many people in here that it's uncomfortable. We want people to enjoy the bands."\nRoss says he never thought the place would be as popular as it is today. \n"When I bought the 'Bird it was eight years old," Ross says. "I knew it had a reputation and we of course kept that reputation going, but I never thought we'd have to expand."\nThe fact that the Bluebird is expanding is music to some student's ears. No major structural changes have ever been made to the place since it first opened its doors 30 years ago and was named after a soda shop in Washington, Ind. \nGeneral Manager Dave Kubiak has been at the Bluebird for eight years and says there has been a need for expansion for quite some time now. Kubiak says that as times change, people change and changing the space at the Bluebird was just what the nightclub needed.\nAny female that has had one too many drinks and a quick need for the restroom can talk about the insufficient women's restrooms at the Bluebird, which Kubiak says is one of the main reasons for expansion. The line was often 15 people out the door and one out of the three stalls was usually out of order.\nFemales will be happy to know that the new section of the Bird has additional restrooms that are much bigger and have more mirrors. No more squeezing into tight spaces just to check hair or makeup.\nKubiak says the Bluebird will finally be handicapped accessible, something it has always lacked.\n"We also have problems getting people from the front of the club to the back of the club because it narrows and then widens up," Kubiak says. "And having one front door, one door in and the same door out, has been a problem too."\nKubiak is also excited about having better sightlines to the stage. They hope the expansion will help bring new and popular bands to the nightclub. He says it's hard to find bands with the style of groups like The 17th Floor, but they try their best to bring in the best bands they can get.\nThe changes are drastic with some of the original walls knocked down, new walkways, an additional new bar and new seating, but owners say the atmosphere will remain the same. \n"We've tried to create some of the old nostalgia of the Bluebird and yet make it modern at the same time," Kubiak says. "So we restored as much brick as possible and created replicas of the booths already here to make it look like the Bluebird. Yet we always wanted to brighten it up a little bit. That was the reason for the glass up front."\nAnd Kubiak is right. A stranger probably wouldn't know by looking at the expansion that it's a new area of the bar. They've created replica booths of the original ones and kept the same nostalgic look of the original bar. Customers will still feel like they're at the Bluebird, just with a lot more room.\nSenior Mike Holden was impressed with the change on Saturday night when many other students came out in the cold and snow to check out Pfreak Show and the new expansion.\n"I think it's better than before because you no longer have to squeeze through that narrow entrance by the original bar," Holden says. "When you're standing near the stage and look back and see all the open space it looks a lot bigger."\nStudents worried about missing the expansion's opening night have nothing to worry about. Kubiak says the grand opening of the new side is scheduled for Friday, Jan. 31. Playing for the first time at the Bluebird will be The Dave Matthews Cover Band from Georgia. Even Pam Thrash from B97 will DJ on Saturday, Feb. 1 from 8 p.m. to midnight. Kubiak says it will be their first big blow out with the new section.\nThe idea for the expansion really got serious only recently last October. Construction started the first of December.\n"People have been working here all the time," Kubiak says. "Saturdays, and long days and nights. It's been quite a project."\nIt's been an expensive project too, Kubiak says. While they have always owned the space next to the existing bar, Kubiak says it's been difficult and very expensive to restore parts of such an old building.\nNew space means new customers for the Bluebird, which also means new employees to keep people drinking and having a good time. From two bars to three and a new entrance, more employees will be needed to keep the place running smoothly.\n"First we'll give the people here more shifts," Kubiak says. "But we'll end up hiring new people. It's great because everyone we have right now is really excited about the expansion."\nEmployees aren't the only ones excited about the expansion. Kubiak has had people tell him for years about the insufficient women's restrooms and crowded entrance. He can't wait for those people to check out the new side.\n"People will be really surprised how cool the new space looks and how much easier it will be to get around the club," Kubiak says. "The people who know about it are very excited."\nThe drink specials will be the same and the bands will hopefully only get better from this point on. More space and more restrooms aren't a drastic change for the Bluebird, and owners say it will stay the same as it's always been. Ross hopes that if they keep the people happy they will keep coming back.\n"We had a staff meeting the other night and our goal was to keep it as the lovable old Bluebird," Ross says. "As we go into our 30th year, it's up to the people who work here to make it a family and have everybody happy when they come in and out of the club."\nThe opening nights of the expansion did keep customers happy. No more crowded narrow walkway at the entrance because there are now two. No long women's line at the restrooms either. The Bluebird's goal was to make the people happy, and already it has done just that.\n"That's our goal of the addition," Ross says. "It's just another part of the Bluebird and has the same warmth and feel it's always had"