North Star Bar to close, become a bar-restaurant
"With the area growing and changing and the 'shaky' nature of the music business it just doesn't make sense," the operators said on their website.
The North Star Bar - the Fairmount live-music landmark - will shut down after 34 years, effective Saturday, Oct. 17.
It will be converted to a bar-restaurant whose new name has not been determined. A sale is pending, according to a filing with the state Liquor Control Board.
The website says the North Star, at 27th and Poplar Streets, will be closed during renovations: "The last-minute decision was made so that the (mostly) cosmetic work could all be done at once, and in a most expedient fashion. Feel free to stop by and say 'Hello', when you see us there working away, painting, etc!"
Click here for memories of the North Star
The site promises "even better food" and "more 'better' beer for the beer garden."
"On a changing times and sad note there will be no more music. With the area growing and changing and the 'shaky' nature of the music business it just doesn't make sense," the statement says.
"So celebrate the great bands you've seen at the North Star and the friends you have made here! The fans and the bands have been part of a stellar music history that nobody can take away from you!
"We will miss the good old days of rock and roll at the North Star, but look on them with great fondness for the rest of our lives and hope that you will as well!"