Pantana Bob’s, known for $1 drinks and Mug Night, will be making its final “last call” this weekend.
The bar has been located on Hillsborough Street since 1988 and will close after business Saturday.
Jeff Green, the manager of PB’s, said he has known for about 10 years that this would eventually happen as a result of the revitalization efforts on the street.
“We found out about month ago that the date has finally come,” Green said.
PB’s was originally slated to close Thursday, but Green said that the landlords of the property decided to let the bar remain open for Homecoming weekend.
“It’s great that we’ll be able to go out that way,” Green said.
Carl Escriva, an employee of PB’s and a senior in textile engineering, said the its customers will miss the bar.
“Everyone kind of knows each other,” Escriva said.
For its send-off weekend, PB’s will feature dollar night, which offers beers, liquor drinks and shots for $1 each, on both Friday and Saturday night. It will be open from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m, according to its Facebook page.
Pantana’s Pool Hall and Saloon, also known as PB’s Pool Hall, which is located across the street, will remain unaffected by this closing, Green said.
“Pantana Bob’s has been a great destination on Hillsborough Street for a long time. It has been a source of entertainment for a long time,” said Jeff Murison, executive director of Hillsborough Street Community Service Corporation.
Murison said that this closing is the result of the continued efforts to give Hillsborough Street a facelift.
“I think everybody agrees that, that block of Hillsborough Street is not the most attractive by any means,” Murison said.
The section of Hillsborough Street that PB’s is located on has been through changes, as several businesses have closed during the past several years, and even some buildings, such as the strucure that formerly hosted another bar, The Farmhouse, was completely demolished.
The building that PB’s occupies will also be removed, and construction of new facilities should begin during the next several years. The preparation for this second phase will probably begin next month, and the city should begin doing construction work by late 2015, according to Murison.
Murison said that the construction plans include the development of shops and apartment living, and he said he’s excited to see the block being redeveloped.
“It will bring a significant number of new residents to the street as well as new commercial space,” Murison said. “That’s important because residents are customers and the businesses on Hillsborough Street need more customers.”
Murison said that his understanding is that there will be about 250 units of multi-tenant space in the new apartment complex, and that the unfortunate closing of businesses is the product of change.
“It’s a natural part of the business cycle … businesses open and flourish, and they also move and close and change,” Murison said.
Green said that although this is the “end of an era” at its current location, PB’s will be reopening somewhere in Raleigh, likely somewhere near N.C. State’s campus.
“We’re taking our stuff out, we’re putting it in storage, and we’re looking for a bigger and better place,” Green said.
Green, who began working at the bar 14 years ago while he was a student at N.C. State, said that he was very thankful for all of the customers who came to PB’s.
“I would just like to thank everybody for the 25 years of patronage,” Green said.
