The building, built circa 1850, was originally a wagon repair and black smith shop. In the 1950s it was Gardineer’s Hardware and Stove Shop, and then operated as one of Peekskill’s many Hairnet Factories well into the 1990s. However, by 2001 it was a phantom building, covered in stucco, painted grey, and almost no-one even knew it was there. But as Drew still says, “When I saw it I knew, it was a building with a soul.”

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So in 2008, Ted opened the BeanRunner Cafe. He had grown up in Kingston Jamaica, “in one of those houses where everyone gathered.” At 16 years old, he immigrated to the U.S., joined the Army and went to VietNam, and spent the next 30 years frequenting cafes in Brooklyn and Greenwich Village, looking for that sense of community, and thinking about how to create it. Since 2008, the BeanRunner Café has grown to be one of the premier jazz and live music venues in Westchester County, loved by musicians and audiences alike. The Café also has rotating art exhibits and has a small family room where children can come and play.