ANN ARBOR, MI - The Circus Bar is changing hands in 2017, but not without a party first.

Owner Nick Easton confirmed to the Ann Arbor News Wednesday he has sold the building located at 210 S. First St. to some buyers from New York, who he said plan to renovate the building and reopen it with a similar setting to Circus in fall 2017.

A message on the Circus website reads:

"This is it, our final farewell. We have had great time serving all of you and made so many irreplaceable memories. After the 14th of January we will be closed permanently, so be here on Saturday for one last night when The Killer Flamingos will be joining us to close out with a bang."

The new owners could not be reached for comment.

Easton has owned the four-story building since 1994, and started the Cavern Club in the basement in 1997. It is now split into four clubs: Circus, Gotham City, Millennium, and Cavern Club, and has drawn in a mixed crowd of students and regulars to play a game of billiards or join in a round of karaoke.

Easton is a fan of history, something he said drove him to purchase the building on First Street. It started its life as the Ann Arbor City Brewery, then a flour mill, before it was bought by the Lohr family in 1925 and became Lohr's Ann Arbor Implement Company.

"They sold lawn and garden equipment, riding mowers, chain saws and stuff like that," he said. "They were quite well-known in Washtenaw County."

He is proud to be the building's fourth owner in 165 years, and named old age as the primary reason for the sale.

"I'm 68 and I'm ready to retire," Easton said with a laugh. "I've been thinking about this awhile."

Less than 10 years ago, he listed the building for sale for $6.8 million.

He informed his employees of the sale about a week ago, some of whom he said had worked for Circus for more than a decade. Easton lives on the top floor of the building, and said he plans to retire to his lakeside cabin in northern Michigan.

Circus drew in people with its relaxed and fun atmosphere, Easton said, and the size of the building allowed for a variety of events that took place over the last 20 years.

"If you're in business for yourself, it's a commitment. Luckily this was a commitment I loved," Easton said. "I consider myself lucky to have fallen into this business because the building just presented itself. This wouldn't work everywhere."

He is taking a few personal items from Circus with him, but mostly memories.

"What stands out, I think, is getting to meet a lot of interesting people, a lot of fun people, who wanted to come and hear good music or play good music," Easton said. "It's been a blast."

The Circus is open during normal business hours, and is hosting a New Year's Eve party in addition to the farewell party January 14.