By Anelia K. Dimitrova
They are brothers and best buddies.
And now, Cedar Falls natives Colin and Brian Hoyer will be business partners in a new venture on College Hill.
The duo is gearing up to open a neighborhood bar in the long-vacant space at 2217 College Street, previously occupied by Hill Street News and Tobacco.
What’s unique about the Hoyer brothers’ vision, they say, is that their establishment will cater to community members and students alike.
“There’s not that place where somebody who’s 21 and somebody who’s 41 and 61 could come in here and sit down and actually watch a football game, listen to some live music,” Colin told me on Wednesday as he took a break from prying out a small platform from the floor.
And the brothers say they have the perfect name for it – Hill Street Dive.
That name, they believe, will carry on the tradition of the prior establishment, where Colin worked as a student, and also convey the idea of a neighborhood pub.
The continuity in the name, connecting the new venture with the old store, is important to the brothers.
“It’s been here forever, and it was here when I was in high school, in elementary school,” Colin told me, referring to the old store. “So you hate to see the name totally gone, so it just felt natural to kind of keep a little piece of that alive.”
The brothers’ decision to partner up on this enterprise is part nostalgia, part trust in the renewed interest of various stakeholders in revitalizing College Hill.
The recent attention by the city, the university and College Hill Partnership to re-envision the Hill incentivized them to move forward into action.
“Knowing that there’s that collaboration, we wanted to get on the ground floor of that and be part of what sort of revitalizes the area, being that we’re both from Cedar Falls. We love the community, we want to be a part of that,” Colin told me.
They recall fondly their years at UNI where Colin studied communication and Brian immersed himself in the John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (JPEC), where he ideated and launched Rite Environmental, a successful recycling and waste removal services business for residential, commercial and municipal projects.
Hill Street Dive highlights
Years ago, the brothers used to go to a downtown bar called Luna, where they toyed with the idea of opening a bar one day and having a podcast about beer.
And now that talk has turned into action, they have rolled up their sleeves to make things happen.
So here’s what the plan entails.
A 35-foot-long bar with open seating will be custom built and installed along the south wall. Large-screen TVs will add a sports vibe to the interior.
The facade overlooking College Street will feature sliding windows that can be opened to ensure a free flow of air and connect the patrons to the outside.
A corner spot by the front windows will be dedicated to live music, complementing the welcoming atmosphere.
Food trucks parked in the space behind the building will offer a variety of tastes to suit the palates of patrons.
And while extensive renovation is under way, the paneling will remain in place, as the brothers believe it will add to the authentic atmosphere of the establishment.
On Wednesday, the space buzzed with renovation efforts. Armed with tools and energy, Sarah Hoyer, Brian’s wife, led the crew as she expertly fished ceiling tiles out of their slots and coaxed them onto the floor. Nor far from her, Colin kept on prying stubborn boards out of the way. And they kept going and going.
They have their work cut out for them but that’s exactly the kind of challenge they thrive on.
The brothers have never run a bar before but between Colin’s hands-on experience as former president of Cambrian Granite and Stone in Cedar Falls and Brian’s enterprising mind in launching, out of his parents’ garage, Rite Environmental, and growing it into the company it is today, the brothers are confident they are embarking on a brotherly adventure.
Brian says trying out new territory as a businessman has never intimidated him.
“I started a recycling and waste management company, never having been in business before,” he said. “And my other brother works with me in that business. So working with brothers and businesses you’ve never done is nothing different or nothing new. So this is just another chapter.”
The opening is expected in June.
The brothers say College Hill is the best spot for that chapter of their history to unfold.
“College Hill isn’t just for college kids,” Brian said. “It’s for the entire community. And we just like to make this more approachable for everybody.”
