Closings & changes coming for 3 local small businesses

CHATTANOOGA (WDEF) – We have notes to pass along for three local businesses that have been part of the Chattanooga fabric for several years.

Koch’s Bakery: closing

Long before the current crop of donut-making bakeries popped up around town, Barbara Davis has been filling Chattanoogans morning appetites in the downtown area.

Now after almost 40 years of donuts, she has decided to retire.

That means Koch’s Bakery on Broad Street will be closing.

Relatives tell us the iconic bakery will be open for 3 more weeks.

If you don’t know the bakery, you probably know the mural next door.

The visual ode to the power of donuts turned into a controversy eight years ago.

After paying an artist to create the work, a city inspector told Davis she would have to take it down because it was an illegal billboard.

It took a petition drive and official intervention to save it.

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Merchants on Main: closing/moving?

The boom on Main Street has a downside.

The rising cost of property is claiming one of their first popular shops.

The Merchants on Main have been painting furniture and selling home decor items for more than 30 vendors for almost 13 years now.

But the mother and daughter team operating the store have posted that they are losing their location.

They still don’t know the future yet for them.  They are thinking of opening spaces in other buildings.

But the Merchant on Main location will close at the end of May.

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The Flying Squirrel: Changes

The news isn’t so drastic for The Flying Squirrel Restaurant.

The Southside neighborhood establishment has been in operation now since 2013.

The operators have decided their future is in serving evening meals.

And that means an end to their Sunday brunches.

Their statement:

Dear friends, fans, and loyal guests:
As we approach ten years in business, we’ve taken a hard look at ourselves and where we want to go from here.

The local dining scene has never been better, or more competitive; the obstacles to success, or even survival, have never been more real. And above all else, we’ve always wanted to sit amongst the top few dining experiences in Chattanooga and the greater region. Our management team is the strongest and most ambitious it’s ever been. Our goals have crystallized. It’s time for us to focus and double down on our most important shared long-term objectives.

In this spirit, we’ve made the unthinkable-to-many decision to dismantle a decade-old Southside institution: Sunday brunch at the Squirrel. It’s had its ups and downs; it’s given us some shiny, tender moments, but more challenges than anything else; at the end of the day, it simply doesn’t dovetail with our goal of being the best damn dinner spot we possibly can be.

So. What exactly does this look like? March 5th will be our last brunch service. We will be closed the following Monday, and starting on Sunday March 12th, we will be open for dinner only, seven nights a week. This is the biggest change we’ve made in ten years, and we don’t take it lightly. You can expect to see a renewed and re-energized focus on our service, food and beverage programs, and hospitality