Brightside Music & Event Venue

We are Carli & Hamilton Dixon , local business owners and artists who have chosen to live, work and play in downtown Dayton, OH for nearly 2 decades.  The Brightside Event & Music Venue, at 905 E. Third Street in downtown Dayton, is our passion project.   See photos HERE 

UPDATE:  WE ONLY NEED $7,500 TO MEET OUR FUNDRAISING GOAL! When we started this project last fall, we needed to raise $97,000, and we are almost there!  Help us cross the finish line and open this new community space.  The Brightside is a two room venue that includes an intimate listening room/gathering room for, occupancy 118, and a larger ballroom with a 16'x40' stage, with additional occupancy of 318.  We have roll-up doors on either side of the large stage, perfect for load in and load out.  We have off street parking and an overflow lot around the corner, ample bathrooms, a liquor license with a full, large bar.  Second floor green room includes a shower and outdoor deck.  When we open this Fall 2018, we will have a house PA in the intimate listening room, and our Phase II improvements will include a house PA in the larger room, more bathrooms and a catering galley.  We cannot wait to share this space with all of you!!

Our smaller listening room is already open and we have been hosting shows to rave reviews from musicians and music fans alike.    We even had the honor of hosting the Mick Montgomery Hootenanny last winter, and many people commented on how much we were able to emulate the vibe of canal street for the event.   Many have remarked on the accoustics in the space being " some of the best accoustics in Dayton."
After a recent show with Sandy & Michael Bashaw, Sandy said  "we've had a LOT of positive feedback about our evening at Brightside. Many have commented to us on how nice the room is -- tastefully decorated, good vibe, warm feeling, good sound."  We also recently hosted Kevin Milner's Pin Drop Series, and you could have literally heard a pin drop in the space!


We have also hosted several very well- received all ages shows with Hear & See Promotions, and we look forward to welcoming  more ALL AGES shows!


All fundraising $'s have gone toward the renovations required for meeting occupancy and opening our doors.  To see a full list of what we've done, and what's left to do, click HERE.   Since this last update, we have raise $28,500, and all raised funds will be used to pay for the final items listed in the To Do column.     See the History of our project below, and the list of donation thank you's that we are offering at the bottom.

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History of the project:
We bought the 905 building along with two other buildings in the same parcel in 2009 with a general goal of taking action to improve our city. We slowly took steps to breathe life back into portions of the buildings, financing the project at huge personal risk using our credit cards and sweat equity. We had no guarantee of tenants or future rental revenue, but we took the risk because our gut told us it was the right thing to do . See before/after photos HERE.  After several years of our efforts, along with amazing contributions from family and friends, we succeeded in gaining occupancy for two of the buildings.

While we renovated much of the 905 building to become the home to our family business (called Bloombeads ), the remainder of the space in the building was occupied for 5 years by tenants hoping to open a multi-purpose venue.  The tenants completed 70% of the improvements, but ended their contract with us because of the costliness of the remaining required renovations. Since the space is not finished, it cannot be rented or used as is.

So, we are faced with a difficult decision; do we leave the space empty and use it for storage, or do we rally support from the community and our network of family and friends to give our hometown what we believe it desperately needs; a large multi-purpose music & event venue?  Our town has great small venues, like bars and restaurants,  and large venues like The Fraze and The Schuster, but there are few options in between.

After a lot of soul searching and conversations with a wide range of people in the community (musicians, caterers, non-profits, engaged couples, artists, dancers, business-owners) we have determined that the need is great for a space like this in our downtown, and the 905 building is ideally suited to fill that need.  It is 40' wide by 120' long with no columns or beams to obstruct the view.  The ceiling is 30' high and accented with massive  beams.  Built in the late 1800's,  the room has a disctinct urban vibe, with large stretches of beautiful exposed brick walls .  An expansive and inviting bar is already built, located in a separate but attached room, so it is the ideal layout for the music fan OR conversationalist.   We also have ample on-site parking.

Many of the time-consuming and challenging details for a project like this are already completed, and now we have a short list of (costly) final renovations, listed HERE.  From our work renovating the rest of the building, we have a track record of success and the experience necessary to serve as our own general contractors, keeping the fundraising needs focused on the required contractor work only.   Also, as you can see from the link provided above, our total funding need is $97,000.  We plan raise half of that with this gofundme campaign, with the other half coming from investors and/or sponsors. 
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HOW YOU CAN HELP:
We hope, after reading our story, you feel as excited and inspired by this opportunity as we do.  We look forward to partnering with YOU, our talented and supportive Dayton community (and those outside the area who are inspired to support us) to raise the remaining funds, in order to complete the renovations and gain occupancy by Fall 2018.  We thank you so much for your consideration in supporting this effort!

Donate $5-$99, we'll be eternally grateful and you'll know you've helped plant the seeds of this community asset. We will add your name to our Supporter Wall of Fame on a 1" magnet in the new ballroom.

Donate $100, we will add you to our Supporter Wall of Fame on a 2" magnet in the new ballroom  +  send you your very own Brightside pint glass.

Donate $175, get of the above, +  one (1) ticket to our Grand Opening VIP Ribbon Cutting.

Donate $250, get all of the above +  a 2nd ticket to our Grand Opening VIP Ribbon Cutting.

Donate $500, get all of the above + we'll add your name to our Supporter Wall of Fame on a 3" magnet + you'll have a FOUNDING MEMBER pint glass at the bar waiting for you. Every visit the Brightside you'll get one refill in your personalized pint glass, on us!

Donate $1000, get all of the above + (1) Free rental of our Bar Room.*  **

Donate $2500 (Booking Level) - Get all of the above + use of the Venue & Bar for your future event. *  **

Interested in supporting us at a higher level?  Please contact us directly so we can discuss investment or sponsorship opportunities.


* The first available dates will depend on fundraising success.  All events must meet City and building requirements prior to being confirmed.  We do reserve the right to deny use of the space if your event does not meet those requirements.    **A separate refundable security deposit will be required for each approved event.

The Exterior of 905 E. Third Street