The series of buildings at the corner of East 9th and Monmouth streets in Newport, Kentucky, is fascinating, and after years of neglect, is being renovated. The circa 1900 one-story structure housed an El Rico drug store and later several financial institutions while an adjoining circa 1900 Italianate Second Empire building featured first-floor retail and apartments above.
In November 2014, Carabello Coffee announced they were purchasing the former El Rico drug store to expand operations – including a slow bar, a training laboratory, and to expand roasting operations with the assistance of the city and WorK Architecture + Design.


























These photos were taken back in October 2014 before renovations.
El Rico Drugs, later was Brown’s Pharmacy, (my grandfather, Clarence W. Lehkamp was the pharmacist, purchasing the facility) 1958 became Lehkamp’s Pharmacy. He was also a City Commissioner for 16 yrs. My father, also pharmacist joined his father at the store in 1963… closing the store in 1980.