SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – Changes in dining, drinking, and retail summed up Springfield Business Journal executive editor Michelle Ownbey’s Thursday appearance on the WTAX Morning Newswatch.

The downtown water main break this year washed out plans for a new bar called the Bus Stop to open at Fifth and Monroe Streets, but the owners found space available nearby, simply having helpers carry their bar literally across the street. “They have moved to the former Bar None space, so they are hoping to be opened up, hopefully, before Halloween,” said Ownbey. “It’s much larger than the space that they originally had intended to be in.”

Down on Sixth Street, there is a change of ownership for the outdoor food court known as the Railyard. “Since February 2025, it’s been operated by Tim and Emily Lewis, but they just welcomed their fifth child (under the age of seven),” said Ownbey, “and they are also planning a move to Florida, where they have some family, so they are passing the torch for the Railyard to Brad and Adria Martin they already run the Oakview BBQ, one of the food vendor shipping containers at the Railyard.”

And the former Fifth Street Flower Shop will become Kindness + Co., a Christian book store which will also donate money to community organizations.