Eatery looking to stay on Main Street
Building that houses Phoenix Emporium to be razed
It’s open when it snows. It’s where people go for more than a beer or a meal.
It’s where they celebrate big life moments, such as bridal showers, baby showers and graduations. It’s where husbands and wives meet for the first time.
It’s the Phoenix Emporium.
The beloved bar and restaurant sits at the base of old Ellicott City’s Main Street, across from the B&O Ellicott City Station Museum.
However, the building that houses the Phoenix — which has stood in that spot since its construction in the 1850s — will soon be gone. The building’s infrastructure has withstood many battles over its long history, including deadly floods in July 2016 and May 2018.
The Phoenix owners have known its ultimate fate since August, when then- County Executive Allan Kittleman proposed the first Ellicott City flood plan that included tearing down 10 buildings on Main Street to limit future flooding.
Current County Executive Calvin Ball recently announced his approved flood plan earlier this month, calling for the razing of four buildings on lower Main Street, including the Phoenix. Scheduled to be completed by mid-2025, the estimated cost of the plan is between $113 million and $140 million.
There is no timeline yet as to when the buildings will be razed, but the Phoenix owner Mark Hemmis already is taking steps to move elsewhere and isn’t looking to move too far.
Hemmis, owner of the restaurant but not the building, said he is “actively negotiating to move the establishment to another building on Main Street.”
“Our goal is to stay on Main Street in Ellicott City in Howard County,” Hemmis
It’s where they celebrate big life moments, such as bridal showers, baby showers and graduations. It’s where husbands and wives meet for the first time.
It’s the Phoenix Emporium.
The beloved bar and restaurant sits at the base of old Ellicott City’s Main Street, across from the B&O Ellicott City Station Museum.
However, the building that houses the Phoenix — which has stood in that spot since its construction in the 1850s — will soon be gone. The building’s infrastructure has withstood many battles over its long history, including deadly floods in July 2016 and May 2018.
The Phoenix owners have known its ultimate fate since August, when then- County Executive Allan Kittleman proposed the first Ellicott City flood plan that included tearing down 10 buildings on Main Street to limit future flooding.
Current County Executive Calvin Ball recently announced his approved flood plan earlier this month, calling for the razing of four buildings on lower Main Street, including the Phoenix. Scheduled to be completed by mid-2025, the estimated cost of the plan is between $113 million and $140 million.
There is no timeline yet as to when the buildings will be razed, but the Phoenix owner Mark Hemmis already is taking steps to move elsewhere and isn’t looking to move too far.
Hemmis, owner of the restaurant but not the building, said he is “actively negotiating to move the establishment to another building on Main Street.”
“Our goal is to stay on Main Street in Ellicott City in Howard County,” Hemmis
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