Johnny Graham showed off his property at 217 E. Capitol Ave. on Sunday to a constant stream of onlookers.
"This will be the right project for someone," he said. "I'd love to see someone breathe some life back into this."
The property, which is an old VFW hall, was part of Sunday's eighth annual Hidden Spaces Secret Places tour.
It was a chance for the public to see mostly downtown locations that are for lease/rent or for sale. It was also a chance for the owners to get the attention of potential tenants or developers.
Graham, who owns Revel Catering, bought the location about 21/2 years ago after the VFW closed. It had operated there since 1952. Graham intended to renovate it and use it for his catering business, currently located a couple blocks away on High Street.
But after he bought the building, he came across an auction for the old Blackwell Garage, 901 E. High St., which was more suitable for his business. He bought that building, and now is looking to sell the old VFW before relocating Revel.
Missy Creed came from the nearby Porchfest event to tour Graham's building at the Hidden Spaces event. She said the weather was perfect and she enjoyed both.
"I'm excited to see events like this on Capital Avenue," she said, adding the old VFW would be a great Airbnb.
It has 10,000 square feet of space across four levels, plus 21 parking spaces in back.
Nearby, at 207 E. High St, Colleen Taylor was showing off the space that was formerly Midwest Travel, which stopped operating out of the location at the end of last year after merging with Central Travel.
The nearly 1,300 square feet started as Winen's Gallery in 1884. For many years, it was known as the home of Caplinger's Clothing.
Taylor owns the building and is looking to lease it.
It features high ceilings and track lighting and would be suitable for a retail space, she said.
The event was sponsored by Downtown Jefferson City, the Historic City of Jefferson and the Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce.
Attendees paid $10 to take the tour, which included a total of eight locations, including the former JCPenney site on High Street, the former vegan restaurant at the corner of Lafayette and High streets, and the former Hookah Lounge at another corner of Lafayette and High.