In December, 1975, Gus and Diane Koerner started paying the rent on a small bar called the Cedar Door. Located in the 500 block of West 15th, the Cedar Door soon attracted a distinguished clientele of journalists, politicians, lawyers, and businessmen.
In June, 1984, the land was sold and the building was moved to East Cesar Chavez, on the West bank of Waller Creek, and remodeled. The Cedar Door flourished there until 1989, when the City of Austin purchased the land for the Austin Convention Center.