When a group of local businessmen announced plans for the Paradise Valley Cultural and Entertainment District nearly a decade ago, part of that vision included a performance and arts-focused cocktail lounge.

Realization of that vision will come when the 2,200-square-foot Vinyl Society venue on Randolph Street opens in November.

To the east: the upcoming reconstruction of Interstate 375 is expected to connect downtown to the neighborhoods. “We ensured that the history of the people, the culture, the music, the clothing, the hairstyles, everything about that period when this was a very rich and vibrant area — it comes out in what we’re doing in the space,” said Dennis Archer Jr., owner of Congress Hospitality.

The lounge sits in an area developers say will become a rejuvenated historic entertainment district along Randolph and Monroe streets downtown. It is among other projects underway in an area near Bedrock’s planned Development at Cadillac Square project, a 1.5-million-square-foot mixed-use phased development between Monroe and Randolph streets, adjacent to Campus Martius Park and Cadillac Square. The area will also see new dining options with soul food restaurant Fixins Soul Kitchen on Randolph, which former NBA All-Star Kevin Johnson expects to open later this year, and housing options with Basco's upcoming Broadway Lofts development on Broadway. “We believe this area will undergo a true renaissance while paying homage to the African American roots of the neighborhood with many new Black-owned businesses opening in the area, including Fixins and The Vinyl Society,” said Nevan Shokar, vice president with Basco.

The entertainment offerings and beautification projects planned for the area "will help us thoughtfully curate programming that stays true to the neighborhood,” he added.
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