State Street is changing. As the hippie era Bob Dylan ranted lyrically: the times, they are a-chang’n. These lyrics were sung in the hippie 60’s era and I think Dylan performed on State St. and probably sang this very song. Well, the times, they are chang’n again.
This post summarizes a few of the new structures going up on or very near State St. and discusses other changes.
There is a new structure on upper State. There is secondly the new Ovation building, and thirdly there is the Hub construction project. I show some pictures of each. I discuss a few other changes also.
This chocolate store has gone in on the upper block of State. There are other new stores there also.
There is a new bar called HopCat. This is right next to Badger Liquor and replaces the fashion store that was once there. It also occupies the location where the old Quaker Steak and Lube used to be. It is a nice looking building.
It is pretty towards night, being right next to Badger Liquor.
Next I show the new Ovation building. This large structure is located where Room of One’s Own and BCD Camera used to be located.
The building is quite new and modern. I believe it houses apartments, including penthouses.
The lower floor of this building houses retail stores. The picture below shows one already in place. It is called Mr. Brews Taphouse.
Although it is fairly old news, the bar Paul’s Club has moved up one door and enjoys a new building and decor. It is a classic State St. bar, and is one of the few surviving store on State Street: Paul’s Club was in existence when I was a student many years ago.
The building below is called The Hub. It replaces the old University Inn among other stores and is across from the Brat House. It is a really large structure that stretches all the way over the city block it is on. It also provides apartments as well as stores on the lower level.
Related: Madison newspapers have commented on the new downtown apartments, 2 boom.
I have summarized a few of the changes on State Street. There are some new structures and some other changes. It will be interesting to see how the sociology of the street will be changing. It used to be a haven for war protesters and “acid heads” in the 60’s. It is still a haven for the homeless and many other people who live at the top of State and in the bus depots. In contrast, some of the new housing going in can be pretty “upscale”. So it will be interesting how the street of classic 60’s era war protest will be changing in the future. The isthmus, being cramped for land, surely needs the housing space.
See this note on reviews.
