Two downtown restaurants are shutting their doors, with one citing Calgary’s high vacancy rate and Alberta’s higher minimum wages as factors.
The Double Zero Pizza restaurant in Calgary’s Core shopping centre closed July 14. Concorde Group, which owns Double Zero, said the lease had expired and they weren’t able to “renegotiate a new lease with the landlord that made sense in today’s economy.”
“With vacancies being much higher downtown than when they first opened, higher minimum wages, new beer taxes etc., every penny counts and it just came down to the lease no longer working,” spokesperson Sarah Geddes said.
“They may open another location down the road but for now are focusing on Chinook.”
Meanwhile, Divino Wine and Cheese Bistro is set to close on Aug. 5.
“Closing Divino was a very difficult business decision and ultimately, we have decided to suspend operations and focus our efforts on our other restaurants: The Lake House, Cilantro and our newest venture – The Loft Bakery, Kitchen and Lounge, as well as Urban Butcher and our new product line CRMR Kitchen,” Canadian Rocky Mountain Resorts director of marketing and public relations Lauren Telfer said in a statement to Global News.
She thanked staff, guests and the Calgary community for 33 years of support for Divino.
With files from Global’s Jill Croteau
Comments