Bob Breithaupt stands outside 518 South High, the future home of Copious / Notes.

Bob Breithaupt says there’s a need for a solid medium-sized live music venue near Downtown Columbus, and the former Executive Director of the Jazz Arts Group is working with a team to meet that demand with a new space opening later this year. “Notes” is the name of a new underground club that will be opening in the basement of the building located at 518 South High Street, in a former F.O.P. private club space called Clancy’s.

“I got a call at end of 2012 from some guys who were thinking about opening a venue that is a combination of an event space, a restaurant and a bar — and they had actually found a place with an underground club too,” recalled Breithaupt. “They wanted my help in developing it as a jazz club, but I wasn’t really interested in that. I live in that world, but I recognized that what we need are more venus that can do lots of different things.”

So the concept for Notes was expanded beyond just jazz to something that Breithaupt calls a “creative music club” — where guests can expect to find local and regional performers ranging from jazz to blues to cabaret to latin dance to singer-songwriter acts. The large 7,000 square foot space will seat between 175 and 200 people at a time with table seating, lounge seating, bar seating and a back room that can be closed off for private parties.

“It’s going to be an unbelievable space, with a lot of distinct experiences depending on where you sit,” said Breithaupt. “We think this has the potential to become one of the really great music venues in the country.”

One of the things Breithaupt says will set Notes apart is the attention being paid to the musicians and entertainers who will perform in the space. A large green room / dressing room in the back is being built out, which he says is rare for a Columbus venue of this size. Notes will also have a lot of “house gear” music equipment kept on site, which is sometimes common in other cities, but is practically unheard of in Columbus.

The main entrance to Notes will be through an exterior stairwell in the back of the building, which immediately gives the venue an old-school feel, though it will also be connected to the main floor of the building with a staircase in the front and new elevator shaft installed in the back.

The main floor of the building will be home to Copious, a brand new farm-to-table restaurant that will be managed by Michael Milching, formerly of Bel Lago, J. Liu and The Refectory. The restaurant will seat around 125 guests indoors, and will also feature a sidewalk patio on High Street and a separate bar area as well. Both Copious and Notes will have their own kitchens and crews on each floor.

The second floor of the building is being renovated into a 7,000 square foot private event space that will be catered by Copious and can be rented out for parties of up to 250 people. It will also feature a balcony patio on the back side of the building. Breithaupt says it would be an ideal space for business functions, wedding receptions and other events.

“From an entertainment perspective, the German Village area has been underserved for years,” he said. “So not only do you have the walkability of an existing customer base down here, you also have thousands of new residents coming soon Downtown who are only a 10-to-15 minute walk away.”

Construction on all three floors is under way right now, and while a grand opening date is not yet set in stone, Breithaupt said that he thinks it will likely open around the first of August.

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