Black Hole for the Milky Way

There are precious few places in Boston where one can rent a pair of wretched shoes and get his or her bowl on. Or sing karaoke with a live band. Soon these activities will be even harder to find. The Jamaica Plain Gazette reports that the Milky Way Lounge and Lanes has been forced to close.

Mayor Tom Menino is doing his best to arrange a short-term lease between the bar and its landlord, who wants to increase the rent now that the Milky Way’s 15-year lease is up.

“Our rent is going up 85 percent, from $13,000 a month to $24,000 a month,” [co-owner Kathie Mainzer] said. “We’d have to charge $60 for a pizza.”

That’s a little rich for the hipsters who frequent the club, we’re guessing.

Bella Luna, a restaurant which shares the space with the Milky Way, already has a new location lined up. It’s pretty ironic that the establishment that classed the area up is now getting the boot.

“Now we’re victims of our own success,” Mainzer said. “We’ve made Hyde Square a desirable location. The whole city has really benefited from our efforts.”

Let that be a lesson to you other business owners out there—don’t be successful. It just leads to heartache.