WASHINGTONBLADE.COM
0 4 • DE CE MB ER 1 4, 2018
LO CA L N E W S
Comings & Goings Billups joins Sotheby’s; Shipley takes new role at EJF By PETER ROSENSTEIN The Comings & Goings column is about sharing the professional successes of our community. We want to recognize those landing new jobs, new clients for their business, joining boards of organizations and other achievements. Please share your successes with us at: comingsandgoings@washblade.com. Congratulations to Adam Ouanes on his position as a Transplant Social Work Intern at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Ouanes said, “As part of the Kidney Transplant’s multidisciplinary team, I conduct psychosocial assessments for potential patients and living donors and participate in the decision making process regarding patient candidacy for transplant or donation.” Previously, he worked as a hospice volunteer with the Visiting Nurse Association of Philadelphia, and is still working as a peer counselor with the William Way LGBT Community ADAM OUANES Center in Philadelphia. Before deciding to go back to school and embark on his current career, Ouanes worked in retail for Bloomingdale’s, and as supervisor at Diesel in Washington, D.C. He has his BFA in acting from the Ira Blind School of Theater Arts, University of the Arts, in Philadelphia, and expects his master’s in social service in May of 2020 from Bryn Mawr College. Congratulations also to Bo Billups who has joined TTR Sotheby’s International Realty Downtown D.C. brokerage. Billups is a veteran Realtor and long-time resident of Washington, D.C. He was named to Washingtonian Magazine’s 2017 list of the 100 Best Real Estate Agents and has experience as a residential loan BO BILLUPS officer and real estate investor. His insights into residential real estate have been the subject of appearances on HGTV and News Channel 8. As an advocate for stronger communities, Billups worked hand-in-hand with members of D.C.’s local government to help establish a free ID program for homeless residents. He said, “I’m thrilled to have joined TTR Sotheby’s International Realty for this next chapter in my real estate career. The company’s sincere commitment to community service reflects my own passion for volunteerism and community building.” He remains an active volunteer with Toastmasters International and has served as its club president. He is also a member of the Shakespeare Theater Company’s LLOYD E. SHIPLEY Artistic Circle. Previously, Billups worked with Coldwell Banker and APEX home loans. He has his bachelor’s in government and international relations from the University of Virginia. Congratulations also to Lloyd E. Shipley on his new position as a resident manager with EJF Real Estate Services. “I am pleased to be continuing my career in this way and looking forward to managing multiple buildings for such a great company,” Shipley said. Over the years, he has been active in real estate and worked for a number of companies including Tilton Bernstein Walsh Real Estate. His experience there included everything from coordinating property closings to assisting clients with staging their homes for sale. He also worked for them as a property manager. Shipley attended the University of Maryland University College studying business management and paralegal studies.
Baltimore’s Grand Central is getting new owners. WASHINGTON BLADE PHOTO BY ED GUNTS
Baltimore’s Grand Central nightclub to change hands Longtime owner to retire after 27 years citing health concerns By ED GUNTS The New Year will bring new owners to Grand Central, Baltimore’s largest LGBTQ-friendly nightclub. Current owner Don Davis said in a message on Facebook that he has a buyer for the 27-year-old business in Baltimore’s Mount Vernon neighborhood and expects to complete the sale by the end of February. In his message, Davis said he has hired a management team that now works for him and “will be working for the new owners come the 28th of February.” He did not name the buyers or state a price. Davis has been in poor health and said he plans to move from Baltimore later this month and retire in Texas. Although he has talked before about selling his property, this is the first time he has spelled out a timetable for the transition. “It was a really hard decision but it’s time to pass the torch so I can take care of my health,” he wrote. Davis said in a separate email message that he could not disclose the names of the new owners until after settlement. When asked if Grand Central would continue to be a gay-friendly club, he said “it will remain the same for at least a year or more.” Located at 1001-1003 North Charles Street, Grand Central is well known as a gathering spot for members of the LGBTQ community and others in central Maryland. If the sale moves ahead, this would be the second time in three years that a gayfriendly nightclub in Baltimore’s Mount Vernon area has changed its operation. The Hippo nightclub on West Eager Street closed in 2015 and was replaced by a branch of CVS. Its liquor license was transferred to the Baltimore Eagle, which closed in July following a dispute between the landlord and its management team. Davis started Grand Central in 1991, when he opened the Central Station Pub at 1001 N. Charles Street. In 2003, he purchased the Stagecoach country and western bar at 1003 N. Charles, combined the two buildings and renamed them Grand Central. Davis said in late 2016 that his asking price was $2.6 million. The price dropped to $1.85 million the following year, according to the Baltimore Sun. The property has almost 15,000 square feet of space, including multiple bars and a large dance floor, and was being marketed with all fixtures and furnishings included. Davis’s Facebook message prompted a string of comments about the club and what it has meant to Baltimore’s LGBT community. “Thank you for all of your support to the community for so many years,” one commenter wrote. “I have so many great memories at Grand Central.” “Baltimore will not be the same without you,” another wrote to Davis. “Central was the first bar I went to when I came out. You gave so many people a place they could be themselves and feel accepted.”