College Inn Pub announces closure after 50 years in Seattle
SEATTLE - A staple of the University District for half a century, the College Inn Pub, will soon close its doors for the very last time.
The owners posted an announcement on the pub's website laying out why the business is shutting down and when the final day is scheduled.
College Inn Pub in Seattle's University District
When does College Inn Pub close?
Owners Jen Gonyer and Al Donohue announced the last day for patrons to come to the pub will be June 15, 2025.
Why did the College Inn Pub close?
The current owners have been operating the pub on a five-year lease. Gonyer explained that without every legal partner signing off on an extension for another five years, the end of the current lease will be the end of the pub.
The couple has tried to find a buyer for the pub since last year.
Reimbursements for keeping things running during the slowed pandemic foot traffic, renovation costs, ADA compliance, and more costly structural problems were all cited in the letter to the University District, and the wider Seattle community.
College Inn Pub (Dylan P on Yelp)
What they're saying:
"Small businesses in the UDistrict will be further impacted by the budgeting crisis the UW community is facing. These factors, plus the physical challenges of the Pub's space itself (no ADA access, no hood or fryer in the kitchen, an ancient relic of a beer cooler system, two aging furnaces, no street presence, and so on), were cited as reasons interested buyers passed again and again."
The pub has been operating in the area since the 1970s. The current owners say they have worked to preserve as much of the original charm as possible since taking over the space, saying they are sad to see the end of an era.
"We purposely did not replace the worn tables or torn seats (unless they were really bad). We saved all of the original wood details we could. These physical details are so important because they harken back to whoever was here before – and current guests are leaving their own imprint for future generations. I so much wanted the UW community to have this touchstone for future generations," said Gonyer.
The Source: Information in this story came from The College Inn Pub.
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