The former Franz’s Tavern is a beehive of activity these days. The tavern, at 1400 S. 5th Ave., Lebanon, is being transformed into a new eatery by owners Andrew and Richelle Arnold, who also own and operate the Blue Bird Inn in Cornwall.
Franz’s had been owned and operated for 25 years by Todd and Belinda Kenee, who made it a welcoming gathering spot. It was closed for several months after the death of chef Todd in March.
The South Lebanon Township property was purchased in October for $330,000 by the Arnolds.
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“I’ve visited Franz’s Tavern a few times over the years. When we bought it, I had a long talk with Linda, and she’s aware that we’ll be renovating it. It was successful but in need of a renovation,” Andrew Arnold said. “The No. 1 thing we knew about the property was that we had to rehab the facility. There are several residential developments nearby, and we want to make it a gathering place for the local community.”
The Arnolds are committed to creating a first-rate facility. “We don’t have a name yet, but we want to honor its heritage. We plan to incorporate the name ‘Franz’ along with a tagline. The menu will be different than the Blue Bird’s, but the high quality of the food will be the same,” Andrew stressed, adding that he hopes to open the new restaurant by the end of the year barring any unexpected delays with availability of materials.
The couple is working with Fairview Builders Inc. to renovate the tavern, which Andrew said dates to around 1840. “We’re familiar with working on older properties. The Blue Bird Inn is an older property as well, and we’ve done renovations there a few times,” he said.
Information on the Blue Bird’s website indicates it was built in 1859; the Arnolds purchased it in 1996 and added a deck that was renovated in 2015, and in 2009, a section was added to the south side of the building.
Arnold said demolition of Franz’s interior began shortly after the property was acquired. Since demolition began, three or four dumpsters filled with debris have been hauled away from the site. Debris included material from the demolition as well as what he called “obsolete items” from the basement and attic.
He said plans for the restaurant at Franz’s Tavern are still being finalized and will be submitted to the Lebanon County Planning Commission and South Lebanon Township for necessary approvals.
“We needed to do the demolition work to see what we’re working with. Demolition is nearly complete. Then, we can begin the permitting process with the county and township,” Arnold explained.
The kitchen and bathrooms have been removed, and the interior has been taken down to the studs. “When we look at old buildings, we look at what we can retain to maintain the historic look and historic value of the building. We’ve exposed a lot of the original woodwork, and you can see the original oak structure of the ceilings. We hope to maintain as much of that as we can,” Arnold said.
He hopes to start putting structure back into the building in six to eight weeks. One of the items that could be incorporated into the new restaurant is the bar and back bar, although the layout may be updated.
“It will be a cool, updated historic facility when it’s done,” Arnold said.
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