In an Instagram tease late last week, Stephen Savage, co-owner of the Wheelhouse and neighboring Start Bar, announced the execution of “a 10-year-lease in the city…in a 13,000-square-foot venue that includes 5,500 square feet of covered outdoor space.” At the time, no other details were revealed.

Then, yesterday, Flying Saucer Draught Emporium, the self-proclaimed bar for “Beerknurds,” located at 900 Spruce Street downtown, announced via Facebook that it would be closing on September 26, after nearly a five and a half year run. Flying Saucer opened to great fanfare in March 2013. Check out SLM’s First Bite video below:

Savage recently revealed that he will be opening a new concept in the space. “While it’s unfortunate for any business to close its doors, it’s great that the Koman Group [developer of the Cupples 9 project, where Flying Saucer is located] can replace a national tenant with a local one,” he says.

Though it's already a large space, Savage plans to reconfigure and enlarge the front bar and bathrooms, creating an additional 1,000 square feet. What really excites him, though, are the two patios, one to the east and another to the south. The popular east-facing patio looks out toward Busch Stadium, and the south patio (pictured below) was never fully developed. Savage’s group plans to enclose that patio (making it useable year round) and build a large outdoor bar.

The food and atmosphere will appeal to “a more mature crowd,” says Savage, and not compete with Wheelhouse and Start Bar, which are geared toward younger patrons.

The 33-year-old restaurateur continues to be bullish on the neighborhood. “Five years ago, when we started Wheelhouse, our plan was to open them all around the Midwest,” he says. “When we discovered that our part of Spruce Street doesn’t experience a downtime because of the Blues, Cardinals, and shows at [the Enterprise Center], we decided it was an amazing place to be and to open more projects right here.”

Atomicdust is currently working on the marketing, branding, and logo. The culinary partner on the project hasn't yet been announced.

The projected opening date: March 1, 2019, just before Mardi Gras—"or at least by the Cardinals home opener," says Savage.