Another Longtime Mom 'n Pop Store Closing in Old Town

PHOTOS of Old Town Coffee, Tea and Spice from Google

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ALEXANDRIA, VA -- Frank Poland, the owner of Old Town Coffee, Tea and Spice, said he plans to close the doors on his business by the end of February.

He said he doesn’t want to close, but after his landlord told him he was raising the rent, it forced his decision.

“The landlord wants to raise the rent,” he said Wednesday. Poland said that he was offered to sign a new lease and would have had to pay rent, taxes and utilities, a “triple net” situation.

“It’s not tenable,” he said. The store opened in Old Town in 1980 and Poland took it over in 1995.

“Pretty soon, we’re going to have a lot of chain stores,” Poland said. “The only way to survive is to own the real estate.”

“The landlords think they’re going to get rich” because of new development coming to Alexandria, Poland said. The store is located at 215 S. Union St., close to the waterfront.

He said the City could do more to help Mom ‘n Pop stores, like adding more signage about how to find the local stores and “backing off on taxes a little bit.”

Poland said that there was a deal for someone to take over the business but that it fell through and he would “absolutely” still entertain any other offers. “I don’t want the business to go away,” he said.

“I’ve had a good 20 years and I’m pleased with what happened,” he said, adding that he’s enjoyed “psychic rewards” of working with college kids who call and write from all over the country to wish him a happy birthday. “That makes me feel wonderful.”

D. Zachary Johns, who also works at the shop, posted a farewell message on Facebook:

It is with no small amount of sadness that we announce Old Coffee, Tea & Spice’s closing this February.

We would like to thank the community and friends near and far for so many years of patronage and memories.

There were obnoxious political discussions, pictures and postcards of traveling adventures, watching families grow, and friends come and go.

I cannot speak for Frank, though I am sure he would agree, but I myself, Zachary Johns(the guy with the beard), would like to say that it has been a pleasure having the opportunity to work at a place so well loved in the hearts of it’s patrons.

There’s little else that can be said without resulting in unnecessarily long stories or uncontrollable blubbering.

Thank you, again.

-D. Zachary Johns