Downtown’s Park Bar Will Temporarily Shutter in December

After 11 years serving downtown Detroit’s entertainment district, The Park Bar is shutting its doors at the end of the year. The bar’s ownership notified fans of the impending closure on Wednesday in a statement to Facebook, revealing that the bar has sold to new owners.

According to the ownership’s announcement, The Park Bar will remain “open various days through the end of December.” Eater has reached out to the Park Bar for more details on the closing and sale.

Owned by Jerry Belanger, the casual spot with its circular center bar and TVs has served as a popular stop for fans on the way to Detroit’s various downtown sports arenas. It was also known for hosting live music and was the original home of the fast-expanding Bucharest Grill shawarma empire.

Bucharest vacated its space in the 2016 after failing to secure a new lease with Belanger. The bar ownership later launched a Hawaiian-inspired restaurant in the space called GoGo’s but the food never achieved the same following as its predecessor.

The Belanger family once owned several bars around the city, has slowly been selling off their businesses over the past few years. Celeste Belanger sold St. CeCe’s Pub in October 2016 but declined to comment on the specific reasons for the sale.

The Park Bar is hosting one final live music event from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. on December 2 as a send-off for friends and fans. Stay tuned for updates on the future of the bar space.

Update, 3:26 p.m., November 16: Cliff Bell’s co-owner tells Eater that he and his business partner Scott Lowell have purchased the Park Bar building and will be closing The Park Bar temporarily on January 1 for minor repairs. Learn more about the transition here.

• All The Park Bar Coverage [ED]
• All The Shutter Coverage [ED]