LAKEVIEW — Pie Hole Pizza will close its Boystown location after the Pride Parade on June 29.
The beloved pizza joint at 3477 N. Broadway has been a Boystown staple for more than a decade.
Owner Doug Brandt said numerous financial concerns — including a rough winter, the rerouting of the Pride Parade and his decision to open a second location in Andersonville — led to the closure.
"I'm not ashamed, really. I don't have any regrets," Brandt said in a statement. "There's no use for living in Woulda-Coulda-Shoulda Land.
"I suppose it was a risk to come clean and announce that we were going to close the one location, but I’ve always tried to run the business with 100 percent transparency. And I didn’t want to suddenly close [Broadway] and leave some cryptic sign on the door. Our fans and employees deserve better than that.”
Brandt said Pie Hole took a hit when the Pride Parade was rerouted in 2012, and several blocks of Broadway were cut off the map. Pie Hole, which was located along the original route, "really counted on that revenue every year," he said.
Another problem was launching the Andersonville location too soon.
“We weren’t ready to open early, but we had no choice," Brandt said. "We needed money to come in. ... And then things just kept getting worse.”
Brandt said repairs and faulty equipment blew through the location's budget last summer. A slow winter made things worse.
Once the Boystown location closes, equipment and supplies will be moved to Andersonville. The restaurant at 5001 N. Clark St. will be closed June 30 to July 2 as the Pie Hole team consolidates equipment.
Brandt said some of the Boystown staff would be able to work in Andersonville, but offered no specifics.
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