A new video bar called Out of Order is taking shape at 1224 SW Harvey Milk St in downtown Portland, where owners Ren Scheuerman and Travis Lay are planning to fill a space with 27-foot ceilings, large-scale music video projections, and room for 90 patrons. The city accepted the pair's Full On-Premises Liquor License Application on September 3, and the bar is aiming for a late spring 2027 opening.
According to WhatNow, Scheuerman and Lay named the bar Out of Order to reflect Portland's independent spirit, and the concept is designed as a safe and welcoming space for the LGBTQIA+ community while remaining open to everyone. The pair have more than a decade of retail experience together, having run two stores in Kentucky for over ten years before closing Lou, based in Louisville, and Lex Tee Time, based in Lexington, and relocating to Portland.
A Video-Forward Concept With Retail on the Side
Scheuerman is developing the bar's projection setup with production partners, and the outlet reports that music videos and other visual content will be a centerpiece of the space, taking advantage of the building's tall ceilings. Out of Order will also include a retail component, selling original Portland- and Oregon-themed T-shirts designed with local artists, per the same account.
Food will factor in too, but as a secondary offering built to satisfy the city's licensing requirements rather than as the main draw, the report notes. Out of Order's menu is still being developed. The requirement traces back to Oregon Administrative Rule 845-006-0460, which calls for at least five different meals in alcohol-service areas and at least 30 dining seats during a specified period before 10 p.m.
The Liquor License and What It Spells Out
The application filed with the City of Portland lists operating hours until 1 a.m. Thursday through Sunday, with the 90 seats split evenly across indoor, outdoor, and other areas, and entertainment plans covering recorded and live music, DJs, dancing, VJs, videos, dancers, and drag performers, according to city liquor license filings. An architect is finalizing plans before construction begins, the report notes, as the space transitions from retail to restaurant and bar use.
Oregon is listed as a control state. Public comments on Out of Order's application remain open through October 3.
A Building With History, In a Corridor Reclaiming Its Own
The building at 1224 SW Harvey Milk St is the site of the project.
The street itself carries its own weight in Portland's LGBTQ+ history. Portland renamed a 13-block stretch of SW Stark Street, long the hub of the city's queer nightlife, to SW Harvey Milk Street in 2018 in honor of the assassinated civil rights activist, as reported by Oregon Public Broadcasting.
Scheuerman first visited Portland in 2006 and has since called it the best city in America, and the outlet reports he is confident in the city's comeback after a rough post-pandemic stretch downtown. He said he wants Out of Order to be a good and happy space, and that he hopes people have fun there and get away from their problems for a few hours.
Public Investment Follows the Neighborhood's Private Bets
The bar's arrival lines up with a wave of public investment along the corridor. The Portland Bureau of Transportation was expected to begin a streetscape project in August 2026 upgrading Pride Plaza on SW Harvey Milk Street between 12th and 13th Avenues with Pride flag-inspired pavement art and permanent outdoor seating, with most work expected to conclude by the end of September. The combined cost of the Pride Plaza and Darcelle XV Plaza projects was $1.8 million, with two-thirds covered by a federal Economic Development Administration grant, according to Willamette Week.
Just blocks away, Darcelle XV Plaza at 800 SW Harvey Milk St is a tribute to drag icon Walter Cole, also known as Darcelle XV, and a venue for free outdoor concerts in partnership with Portland Parks & Recreation. The city's broader Public Realm and Street Activation strategy mentions connections between public spaces.
The project also drew support from within the neighborhood's business community. An earlier Hoodline report noted that Logan, co-owner of the nearby bar Camp, supported the Out of Order project, as did a McMenamins manager. Camp itself was slated to move into the former Scandals space on SW Harvey Milk Street with an anticipated June 2026 opening, after Logan Whalen relocated his barber shop to the street in 2024, part of the same wave of owners betting on downtown's historic gay district finding its footing again.
