st. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) – Green Bench is part of St. Petersburg’s beautiful and painful history, but the owners of Green Bench Brewing are using their business to reclaim a portion of the city’s dark past.
From 1908, green benches began to consume the city of St. Petersburg. During quarantine, nearly 7,000 green benches lined up on St. Petersburg streets.
“The city used it as an expression of a community gathering that shows us we are a great weather, a community, a city of green benches,” Christopher Johnson said. “It strolled around with your community and made the idea of being social.”
It’s a colorful and beautiful memory for some, but it’s painful for others.
“You got some of the white community who said, ‘Yeah, I remember that. My grandma was sitting on it. It was amazing.'” Johnson said. “You talk to the black community, “I remember the green benches. We weren’t allowed to use them.” ”
The African American community in St. Petersburg was not permitted to sit on those benches.
“These represent separation,” Johnson said. “They represent pain. It’s a symbol for many people.”
However, Green Bench Brewing Co. is regaining its history. Khristopher Johnson is the co-founder of Green Bench Brewing Co., 1133 Baum Ave N. It was St. Pete’s first microbrewery. Like the history of the Green Bench, Johnson and his business partners faced adversity before opening.
“St. Pete didn’t allow retail and manufacturing facilities on the same site, so we were unable to build tasting rooms at the brewery,” Johnson said.
Before 2012, breweries were unable to make their own beers and sell them to consumers in the same building. Johnson and his two business partners, Nathan Stone Schiffer and Stephen Duffy, fought for two years to change the laws of St. Pete. Together they did it and eventually opened their first microbrewery in St. Petersburg. They then took it a step further.
“We wanted to be able to tell history, our stories, but that was a challenge,” Johnson said. “There’s the commitment and responsibility you have.”
They have now been responsible for that for 13 years.
“Our goal is to be a place for everyone,” he said. “We want everyone to sit on a green bench. For me, seeing black people sitting on a green bench is the coolest thing ever.”
Especially because it’s personal to Johnson, who lived through quarantine and fought discrimination every day.
“I told them about having to go through the restaurant backdoor just to have food,” Johnson recalls. “Our neighbourhood realms were not able to experience. The battle they experienced to do so is to personally use my perspective as often as possible that I can give to me, given to me, given to my people by my people, by my people, to get the opportunity.
In addition to his intentionality at Green Bench Brewing Co., Johnson is a founding officer of the Black Brewer’s Association of America. He works with the organization to help increase the number of African Americans in high-level positions in the beer industry.
“We want to see more African Americans as owners.
He also helps minority young people get scholarships that will help them enter the beer industry. He does it through the Michael James Jackson Foundation for brewing and distillation. He is one of the founding committee members that offers scholarships and is the vice president of the organization.
Johnson said it was an honor and privilege to be in this position to help make a difference.
“I’m extremely proud. I’m extremely proud. I’m very proud of my family, my community, and the people who have chosen to join this,” Johnson said. “I didn’t think I was in a position to influence and protect people’s heritage. People in St. Petersburg, not just people in the African-American sense. Being able to express that is one of the greatest privileges I have.”
