McCormick & Schmick's closes downtown restaurant - Portland Business Journal:

ramoledef.blogspot.com
The Portland-based company notified the restaurant’w 38 employees of its decisioj and immediately closed the restaurantthis afternoon. All employees were offered positionsa at otherMcCormick & Schmick’s locations in the Portlanfd metro area. Rumors the restauranr would close have circulated since at least Twoyears ago, McCormick & Schmick’s stopped serving lunch at the in part because ongoing construction in downtown curtailede traffic. CEO William Freemamn said the company and its landlorx worked hard to reach an agreement that wouls have allowed the restaurant tocontinuw operating. In the end, it wasn’t possible.
He said none of the company’w 96 remaining locations in the U.S. and Canadaa is in similar jeopardy. McCormick & Schmick’d (NASDAQ: MSSR) has struggled with mounting losse since the recession started more than ayear ago, includinhg double-digit declines in same store salea at restaurants open more than a year. It lost nearly $70 million in 2008 and $1.1 million in the firsg quarterof 2009. It will open no more than thres new restaurantsthis year, far belosw its usual pace of 10 to 12 new locationsz a year. Freeman, who joined the companyu earlierthis year, said the decision to close the first McCormick & Schmick’s location was difficult.
“It’s obviously a specialp unit for us,” he said. The company actes quickly to close the restaurant so employeees can report to their new locations in time for the starrt of the busysummer season. The company has several week s left on the lease and will spend that time takingh inventory and determining where furnishings and other equipment mighf bestbe used. McCormick Schmick’s founders Bill McCormick and Doug Schmick openefdthe wood-paneled restaurant in 1979. The 9,400-square-footg downtown location, in the Henry Failing Building, was placed on the market Tuesday by brokers Don Drakse and Tim Parker of Melvin MarkBrokerage Co.
The asking rent is $18 per squarew foot per year. The spacd includes 5,070 square feet of groun d floor, a mezzanine for private dining, kitchen, bar and lowee level coolers, prep kitchen, storage and It is on the Max line in the SkidmoreFountainj district.