Cowboy Jack's is a step closer to demolition.

The City of St. Cloud issued a permit approving the building's demolition at 506 St. Germain St. The business has been closed since February 2020, when the neighboring Press Bar burned down and caused varying levels of damage to other downtown businesses, particularly Cowboy Jack's.

The permit stipulates that the adjacent building, which is vacant at the ground level and has apartments above, has to be verified as completely structurally independent prior to demolition, and if it is not, more permits may be required to "complete structural independence" for the building next to Cowboy Jack's.

The After Midnight Group owns the property, and the Times has reached out for comment. Specialty contracting and waste management business Veit & Company, which applied for the permit, did not return a call requesting information.

The Press Bar, which was next to Cowboy Jack's, burned Feb. 17, 2020. Its owner, Andrew Charles Welsh, was later charged with arson and indicted on three counts, including use of fire to commit a federal felony and wire fraud.

This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: City of St. Cloud approves demolition of Cowboy Jack's building