By Katie Molck

LOUISVILLE, KY — The legacy of Schnitzelburg neighborhood resident George Hauck will live on with the restoration + renovation of his former convenience store, Hauck’s Handy Store at 1000 Goss Ave.

Hauck’s Handy Store closed in 2019 after the family retired. An ownership group that includes Chris Priddy and businessman Fred Pizzonia, purchased the historic building — dating back to 1890 — and several other properties in the 900 and 1000 blocks of Goss Ave. in 2020 for $575,000.

The group is looking to open a bar and potentially a restaurant in the 2,600-sqft space, but neighborhood residents can expect it to look like the Hauck’s they remember. Preservationist and Germantown resident, Jeff Walschon, is rebuilding the bar to look like the former handy store.

Renovations will include refurbishing the floorboards to be reused inside, the giant red and blue neon sign advertising the store’s cold beer + lunch meat hanging from the side of the building is being repaired.

The renovation, which is expected to cost more than $200,000, will also include an outdoor courtyard where the community can host events.

There’s no timeline on when the bar will open, but the group plans, with the permission of the family, to include Hauck in the name.

George, who died in 2020 at the age of 100, is famed for creating a neighborhood institution where residents could pick up staple grocery items or reminisce over a couple of Bud Lights.

He is also the founder of the World Dainty Championship 50+ years ago. The game, brought to Louisville in the 1800s by German immigrants, requires players to flip a peg off the ground with a broom handle then try to hit the peg down the street. The event occurs every year on George Hauck Way, where the man himself competed in the Dainty Fest until he was 92.

DYK: Schnitzelburg brewery Monnik named a beer after George Hauck. Hauck’s American Pilsner is a crisp and drinkable lager.