Four local residents pooled $700,000 in recent weeks to stop a looming foreclosure at The Ravington event venue in Centerton and turn it into a new home for The Meteor Guitar Gallery.

Local real estate professionals Beth Day and Ramsay Ball had been working with Les Key, founder of The Meteor, in recent months on a plan to purchase the building, intending to bring concerts to the venue while maintaining the existing event rental business.

Their original idea was to crowdfund the purchase with the help of the community, allowing the business to focus on music instead of paying interest on a large loan.

But with a potential foreclosure on The Ravington coming sooner than expected, they had to scramble, publicly announcing their plans earlier this month.

There wasn’t enough time to set up an online crowdfunding campaign, which would have required navigating complex regulations put in place by the Securities and Exchange Commission and state law. Limited by how people could invest, they recruited two new investors to the cause.

“We had several people who kind of stepped up, and then they stepped back, and stepped up and stepped back,” Day said.

With days left to act, Day had to ask herself how much she really believed in the idea. She saw doors opening for the project, just not fast enough to meet the deadline.

In the end, she took out a line of credit on her own home to close the funding gap.

“If the light keeps turning green, just have a little faith. You only live once,” she said.

With the keys to the building now in hand, Day and the other partners are turning to the next phase of fundraising. The money raised was enough to stop the foreclosure and pay off back taxes, but it’s only the first step in a three-stage process.

With more time to plan, phase two includes launching an online fundraising campaign to raise $350,000 and complete the purchase of the building.

The total purchase price of the building is $1 million. Amber and Eric Gustafson, who have owned The Ravington for the past decade, will owner-finance the rest of the purchase and will not be involved in the new business.

Phase three, with a projected goal of $300,000, would cover roof updates, a bar buildout, kitchen improvements and other upgrades, according to the project website.

The timing of the next steps is still to be determined, Day said, but she remains confident enough money can be raised to complete the plan.

“I want it to be a freehold asset, so that the musicians, the owners, that none of us have to worry about a bank taking it away,” she said. “So as long as we don't have to worry about a bank taking it away, then we can make music.”

While profit isn’t the primary motive, she argued it is still a good investment, noting that the building was recently assessed at $1.7 million and that the City of Centerton has plans to redevelop the downtown area where it is located.

“It's not smoke and mirrors. It's not a new internet startup or AI skin that somebody's selling,” she said. “This is a piece of real estate on Main Street in Centerton, and we have the perfect person to put in it.”

Day said about 25 weddings are already booked at the venue and that all reserved dates and previously agreed-upon rates will be honored. A few couples have recently canceled their reservations, but the team also has several tours already scheduled with prospective clients.

The group also hopes to start booking concerts soon. “We don't have to have a stage in order to have music,” Day said.

At a party at the venue on Friday, Feb. 13, Day and the other partners shared that the potential foreclosure had been avoided and that the project would move forward.

Eight different local acts played sets — the kind of music The Meteor was known for hosting during its time in downtown Bentonville.

Key said he noticed “a lot of new faces” and that he was excited about the new location. 

“I kind of always believed in it. Always had that worry, but it just felt right. Felt like it needed to happen,” he said. “The community seems to be screaming for it.”

In the months since losing his last space, Key has been looking for a way to revive The Meteor – and also organizing his house.

“I’ve been doing my ‘honey to-do’ list,” he said. “My garage has been a mess for 12 years.”

When he launched The Meteor in its first iteration, he was working for architecture firms. He had never booked a band and wasn’t a particularly frequent concertgoer. He said he simply wanted to create a space for local artists to perform.

“It’s never been about the money,” Key said. “We didn’t know how to do any of this when we started it. Now we get a second shot at this.”

Correction, Feb. 20: This article has been updated to clarify the number of investors and the type of loan taken out by Day.