The doors closed on a Riverside institution Monday, when Provo’s Village Bake Shoppe sold its last pastry. According to the bakery’s owner, Wesley Kuras, he is being forced out by the owner of the property, Scott Zimmer. He has until Dec. 31 to completely vacate the property.
Provo’s departure from 31 E. Burlington St. appears to be the result of a rent dispute going back for almost a year, although the departure of the bakery could set the stage for Zimmer to reenter the restaurant business locally. Until June, Zimmer was owner and operator of Chew Chew Cafe, a popular restaurant at 1 Riverside Road. The restaurant had been at that location for the past 10 years.
In April 2007, Zimmer filed a lawsuit against Kuras seeking almost $3,000 in back rent, according to Kuras, who said he was also served with a five-day notice to vacate the premises at that time.
Eventually, Kuras worked out an arrangement to pay Zimmer rent for the ground-floor space through the end of 2007. After that, Kuras said, he was out.
“I want to stay here … but there’s nowhere to go here and, unfortunately, I’ve got to move out,” Kuras said.
“Regretfully, Mr. Kuras could not fulfill the obligations of his lease at 31 East Burlington,” said Zimmer in reply to an e-mail from the Landmark. “I am sympathetic to his situation and I hope he finds a new location that better suits his needs.”
Kuras purchased Provo’s in 2000, but first began working at the bakery in August of 1989, five years after arriving in the U.S. from his native Poland, where he was schooled as a baker.
The property has housed a bakery since 1945, said Kuras. He bought the business from its previous owner Linda Acker, who in December 2005 sold the property, which includes the ground-floor commercial space and a second-floor residential unit to Zimmer for $285,000.
At the time, Kuras said, Zimmer told him he was buying the building as an investment property. In a March 2006 article in the Landmark, Zimmer declined to comment on the purchase of building, noting only that the space already had a tenant.
Kuras, however, said that in a conversation this year Zimmer told him that he and his business partner had plans for the space. Kuras said he had no idea what those plans were or if they included a restaurant.
Asked about the future of the building, Zimmer did not specify any plans, stating only, “I am optimistic that a new business identity will benefit the residents of Riverside and the neighboring businesses on Burlington Street.”
Kuras, a resident of Brookfield, acknowledged that the cyclical nature of his business occasionally made it difficult for him to make his rent payments.
“Last year Christmas was not so good and January was bad, so I was short of money in February,” Kuras said. “I fell behind in rent.”
Kuras was the bakery’s fifth owner since 1990. He blamed a combination of increased competition from nearby coffee shops and a lack of support from village residents for the bakery’s decline in business.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that the local community doesn’t support much,” Kuras said.
Kuras said he is still searching for a new location for the bakery, adding he has inquired about properties in North Riverside, LaGrange Park and Addison.