The Davis Odd Fellows Lodge — which has been refurbishing its building on Second Street in phases over the past six years — is about to reopen its upper hall. Work crews are finishing up the final trim and details this week.

“The upper hall is even larger than the lower hall,” said Dave Rosenberg, president of the Odd Fellows board that manages the downtown hall. “It can accommodate around 220 people for a sit-down dinner, and a larger group for parties, lectures or concerts.

“There’s a stage, it is perfect for music. We expect that the university will rent it for certain events, and musical groups and theater companies. It’s already been booked well into next year for weddings, parties and bar mitzvahs.”

Rosenberg added that “the Odd Fellows have been in Davis since 1870. We are the oldest organization in the city — we were here before Davis was a city. The organization was originally known as the Yolo Lodge.”

The previous lodge was on G Street; the current lodge at 415 Second St. was built in 1955.

“And from 1955 until 2005, the building stayed essentially the same,” Rosenberg said. A major renovation began in 2005.

“We have been doing it in phases,” he explained. “The first phases dealt with remodeling the lower hall, with new wood paneling, carpet, chandeliers and storage. We also remodeled the small office there.

“And then the bathrooms upstairs and downstairs were totally remodeled. And we put in a stainless-steel kitchen, and an elevator. Last year, we redid the roof.”

Now the updating of the upper hall is nearly complete. A wedding ceremony is planned this weekend in the upper hall, then a Barry Melton concert Thursday, Oct. 20, benefits Habitat for Humanity of Yolo County. A poker night on Oct. 22 benefits the Yolo Community Care Continuum; that’s followed by an Oct. 29 “Monster Bash” Halloween party (for adults) to support the Davis High School Madrigals.

There’s still a bit more work scheduled in other areas of the Odd Fellows Hall.

“There is a large storage room that we are going to convert into a meeting room that will be available for rental,” Rosenberg said. “It will accommodate about 25 or so people. It will be a wonderful downtown space for organizations holding meetings of about that size.”

For information about renting the hall, call the Odd Fellows at (530) 758-4940.

— Reach Jeff Hudson at [email protected] or (530) 747-8055.

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The upper hall features scaffolding and exposed dry wall on Wednesday morning, but it will be refurbished in time for a wedding this weekend and a concert next week. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo

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A workman sands and stains supporting columns Wednesday morning in the upper hall at the Davis Odd Fellows Lodge, 415 Second St. in downtown Davis. The upper hall can accommodate 220 people for a sit-down dinner, and larger groups for parties, lectures or concerts. Sue Cockrell/Enterprise photo

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