What are they building? Old Olympia brewery coming back to life

The suds could be flowing again at the legendary Olympia brewery in Tumwater, thanks to a group that plans to bring beer and a whole lot more back to the historic site.

While we usually focus on projects underway, we couldn’t resist setting our sights to the south in this week’s installment of What are they building?

An investment group says it’s moving ahead with plans to turn the former brewery into a beer lovers paradise, with craft breweries, a distillery, brewpub, retail stores and more.

Northwest Investment Group LLC hopes to close on its purchase of the property on Custer Way just off Interstate 5 before the end of the year.

There’s even talk of a food and beverage college of sorts to create an “educational platform for brewing, distilling and culinary arts,” according to a press release.

The brewery has been sitting empty since Miller Brewing shut it down in 2003. The site has been managed by real estate broker Troy Dana with Dana Commercial since 2008.

“My goal was always to bring beer back here,” Dana told the Everett Herald. “I’ve been fighting that fight for a long time.

The former Olympia Brewery has been vacant since Miller closed it in 2003.

“It has been sitting fallow for far too long,” said Douglas Gray, partner of NW Investment Group LLC, in the press release.

Miller/Coors had previously prevented alcohol from being produced on the property, but the company lifted the restriction in June 2013.

The investment group hopes to complete the redevelopment of the 45,000-square-foot main building by the end of 2015.

“Having the opportunity to bring life back into this property will be exciting for everyone involved. We look forward to working with the city of Tumwater and Thurston County to help make this site a vibrant destination again,” NW Investment’s Ken Brogan said in the release.

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