WEST RIDGE — After 46 years of slinging shots and $2 drafts on Touhy Avenue, My Place tavern closed its doors for good after last call Sunday.
The wood-paneled dive bar at 2212 W. Touhy Ave. was opened in May 1971 by owner Bob Padgett, and didn't change much over the years. But that's the way locals liked it.
Padgett died at the age of 87, and passed the business to his two children. He would have turned 88 on Thursday.
For a year, the pair worked to keep the bar going, including updating its payment system to accept credit cards and setting its closing time at 1 a.m., but last week they announced with "great sadness" it was time to put the bar to rest.
"This was our father's dream, and it has provided for the family throughout the years," son Mike Padgett posted on the bar's Facebook page.
The younger Padgett was 9 and his sister 2 when the family bought the neighborhood watering hole, recognizable along a drab stretch of Touhy by its bright, but simple, yellow sign.
"We knew the day would come that we may need to make this tough decision," he said. "This is a very challenging business to run ... and I commend my Dad for making it work for 46 years."
The bar was beloved by many for its classic dive interior and no-frills experience: decades of being cash-only, a free jukebox, cheap (and strong) drinks and plenty of familiar faces.
My Place's last hurrah was Sunday; it's lights were turned off the lights for good at the end of the shift.
"I want to thank everyone past and present that have made My Place tavern what it was and is today," Padgett said.
Padgett could not be immediately reached.
