Another coney island along Whittaker Road closes, at least temporarily
Another coney island restaurant along Whittaker Road in Ypsilanti Township has closed.
Stony Creek Koney Island, located at 1828 Whittaker Rd. in the Paint Creek Crossing Shopping Center about a mile south of I-94, was closed today.
A woman who did not give her name but who answered the phone at the home of owner Robert Lee Phillips in Lincoln Park said the restaurant was closed, but only temporarily.
“At the moment we’re closed, but we’re not officially closed,” she said. She later added the restaurant was closed for remodeling, but refused to answer further questions and hung up.
The blinds on the windows of Stony Creek Koney Island were shuttered this afternoon, employees of neighboring businesses said.
It’s the second coney island along Whittaker Road to close in as many months. The nearby Kerby’s Koney Island at 1960 Whittaker Rd. closed in early March after just a year in business. At the time, Richard Glaze, general manager of Stony Creek Koney, said former Kerby’s customers were finding their way into his restaurant.
On Sunday, Stony Creek Koney's customers were making their way to Leo's Coney Island, located on Anna J. Stepp Rd., off of Whittaker, a half-mile north, said partner Hassan Bazzi.
While his competition is closing — he saw an uptick when Kerbey's closed — it's still a sad day, Bazzi said.
"It's not good news. Competition makes everyone better," he said. While traffic began to pick up in March, the winter was slow, Bazzi said.
The Paint Creek Crossing Shopping Center, anchored by Kroger, has been hit by at least a couple of closings over the past year: Heelz Plus women’s clothing boutique and Hershey’s Ice Cream.
According to the website of Grenadier Properties, part-owners of the shopping center, 12 storefronts are available for lease, ranging from 1,400 to 6,800 square feet. But the website still showed Hershey’s, which closed last summer, as a tenant. The company could not be reached for comment.
Janet Miller is a freelance writer for AnnArbor.com.
Comments
dading dont delete me bro
Thu, Apr 21, 2011 : 1:41 a.m.
stony creek's website: <a href="http://stonycreekkoneyisland.com/Home.html" rel='nofollow'>http://stonycreekkoneyisland.com/Home.html</a>
Rob MI
Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 8:03 p.m.
And then there was one? Time will tell, and I agree with DennisP's posting regarding remodeling. My first visit there--sometime during the latter half of their first year--was a poor one and I've never returned. Of the three, I'm glad that the one that's still around is the one I liked the best.
quitoslady
Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 4:27 p.m.
They need a new staff. We went there last week and the service was down right awful.
bunnyabbot
Wed, Apr 20, 2011 : 1:58 a.m.
this is sad, we frequently ate here. They were always packed on sundays and had a decent crowd the other days we went. I hope they reopen. So many places going under.
Thinking over here
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 10:23 p.m.
They were a Groupn deal a while back -= glad I used my deal rather soon after buying it :)
treetowncartel
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 9:56 p.m.
Viva Chicago Dog!!
DennisP
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 8:35 p.m.
It's been my experience that when a restaurant closes for "remodeling" it never reopens. I think it's sort of a stall tactic in the business to keep creditors and employees at bay while the owner sells off assets or whatever then has the LLC or Inc that "owns" the business file bankruptcy and dissolve. I'm not saying that's the case here, but it isn't an uncommon thing to see.
Dr. Vag
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 8:35 p.m.
Zooblie closed too
glimmertwin
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 8:21 p.m.
Sad to see, but this proprietor contested every restaurant proposed for the area. Thank goodness he lost some of his battles (Aubrres). I wonder if a better approach would have been to promote more restaurants (not Coney-style) and make the area more of a destination he would have got more business. I'm no restaurant person, but I have talked to some that told me this. Whenever we have been in there, the customers have been sparse. The insane parking layout of this center doesn't help any.
Turd Ferguson
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 8:08 p.m.
If they're wheeling equipment out, guess I'm not going there for dinner tonight.
dading dont delete me bro
Tue, Apr 19, 2011 : 7:22 p.m.
hope remodeling means all new equipment. my wife just drove by and reports a trailer backed in over there and equipment being hauled out...LOTS of equipment being hauled out. doh!