Every year has its ups and its downs, its comings and its goings. As we prepare to embark on a new year of adventure (and probable construction), let’s take a few moments to remember the 365 days that just passed. 2024 will forever be remembered as the year we lost our skating cred and loosened our grip on bubble tea dominance. We said goodbye to our Post Office and several restaurants. Some, like Sam’s Pizza Island, had been fixtures for decades others, like Central Bistro, for weeks. We also bid farewell to dozens of trees on N. New St, plans to put gates up and down Gay St., and the brownfields on N. Nields St. So here you go, all those and 14 other things we lost this year.
Airport Rd. Post Office
This July the Airport Road Post Office was closed after a 2-alarm fire tore through the building. While initial plans called for rebuilding the West Chester hub, I am now hearing from postal carriers with knowledge on the subject that the shift to Tri-County in Southeastern, PA may be permanent. “There is no rebuild. We are merging with tri-county,” mail carrier Mathew reported. No one seems happy about the situation including Congresswoman Chrissy Houlihan.
“This location is critically important to maintaining adequate services in this part of my district in the long term,” she wrote to Postmaster Lois DeJoy in October.
So far, attempts to confirm future plans have gone unanswered.
Fairman’s Skate Shop
In April, Fairman’s Skate Shop closed after 47 years of serving the West Chester community.
Originally opened by Dave Fairman, the skate shop started in Prospect Park before moving to the Borough in 1988. The store was sold to Mike Moll in 2014, who ran the shop for 10 more years.
Fairman’s Skateshop was not only a popular destination for aspiring talent and burgeoning professional skateboarders such as Kerry Getz, Andrew Cannon, and Bam Margera, but it was a key supporter of their efforts.
“Thank you everyone for being a part of the journey! It was an honor to keep this shop going for 10 more years,” Mike shared on social as he announced the closing.
Chester County Ciders
Four years ago, friends Josh Lasensky, Manly Parks, and Greg Ott decided to redefine the cider experience by introducing Chester County to small-batch, locally-sourced ciders more reminiscent of the drink George Washington would have sipped than the mass-produced “sugar bombs” served today. Unfortunately, that journey was cut short after the building where they produced their ciders was sold.
“Given the challenge of finding affordable new production space, [licensing it and restarting operations], we have made the decision to suspend operations as a commercial cidery at the end of 2024,” the Cider guys shared in a post last month.
Kung Fu Tea
This summer, Kung Fu Tea closed its doors. They then announced the location would reopen as a sushi restaurant – with boba tea, of course.
Serum Kitchen and Taphouse
After opening in March at 142 E. Market St. and debuting their much-hyped rooftop dining in late July, Serum Kitchen and Taphouse closed its doors and wiped away all West Chester associations at the end of November. A month later no one seems any closer to knowing exactly what caused the Imprint Brewing owners to pack up and head back to Hatfield.
Sterling Pig
This October, Jerome, Loic, and Brian announced they were closing the Sterling Pig Public House West Chester “after five wonderful years” serving the community.
“We are incredibly grateful for the support and loyalty you have shown us over the years. Your patronage has meant the world to us, and we have cherished every moment spent serving you,” they shared on Instagram.
The closure, however, was short-lived. Within weeks of saying goodbye the sign was painted over and the new “barcade” concept Bier and Loathing was open and ready for play.
Vida Beale Consignment Shop
The S. Church St consignment shop closed in late October and moved to Malvern. They always had the cutest windows but sadly, they were never open when I wanted them to be.
Blazin’ J’s
And then there were five. The first of the Nashville Hot Chicken-inspired restaurants to open, it was also the first to leave. Blazin’ J’s on Gay St. closed after 2 years this December.
Three Dog Bakery
Billing themselves as “the original dog bakery,” Three Dog Bakery on West Chester Pike opened in 2019, survived the pandemic, and built up a loyal following for their made-from-scratch Pupcakes, cakes, and cookies. Unfortunately, health issues with their dog Rocky sped up retirement plans.
“For five years, we have worked extremely hard and devoted endless hours to building a unique pet store and bakery that we have enjoyed owning,” Kim, Chris, and Rocky shared on social.
Styrofoam Containers in West Goshen
In September, West Goshen Supervisors voted to amend Township Code: Chapter 61 (Plastic Bags and Plastic Straws) to add polystyrene (Styrofoam) containers. The ban includes cups and containers but excludes egg cartons and certain packaging. It is estimated that 40 businesses will be impacted by the ban when it goes into effect in March.
The Trees on N. New St.
This year dozens of trees were cut down along N. New St. from Taylor Mill Rd. to Sunset Hollow Rd.
“We are relocating the line to the immediate roadside, which will allow for quicker access for corrective maintenance or outages,” PECO shared in a statement. “To accomplish this, we had to remove vegetation from the roadside to make way for the relocated pole line.”
There is a promised replanting program but no amount of seedlings can make up for the loss – at least not for another 40 years.
Gates on Gay St.
This summer, West Chester Borough revealed new plans to safely close Gay St. on summer weekends and this time the plans did not involve installing a series of wrought iron gates along the street.
Instead, the Borough will use “specialty” bollards. While aesthetically less intrusive than the proposed gates, they were previously ruled out due to pipes, wires, and other infrastructure below the street. Rather than screw directly into the street, these bollards slide along a track. A demo video shows a woman of average build moving them effortlessly.
Phase one of the closure upgrade project is expected to begin this year. In addition to the bollards, the Borough will add ADA-compliant ramps and new signage throughout the closure.
Central Bistro
The short-lived Central Bistro opened on July 3 and closed on Sept. 1. It is unclear what exactly happened, but after a two-month reprieve, 16 E. Gay St. is back to being vacant.
Happy Bakery
First, it was City Buns. Then after a brief closure, owner Vicky Lambert readjusted her concept and reopened last December, as Happy Bakery. Then there was an ownership dispute, another potential name change, and finally, the well-documented bakery saga came to an end this summer.
That said, Vicky and her city buns are not gone for good. She has moved operations to Carter St. and for the last several months has been selling baked goods at pop-up locations she announces weekly.
“I have no idea if this pivot will work. But I’m determined to try,” she shared this summer.
Couch Tomato
Ok, so this wasn’t so much a goodbye as a renaming, but if one day decades from now someone is reminiscing about that pizza place on Gay St. let the record show that 2024 was the year Couch Tomato became the Tomato Shack.
Timothy’s
Timothy’s, the West Goshen sports bar, favored by the Westtown-East Goshen (WEGO) Rotary, and West Chester University faculty, closed its doors this June after 13 years in operation.
“We are very sad to announce that Saturday 6/29 will be our last day of operation. We are so thankful to our community for the years of business,” they shared on Facebook.
WCU alumni Timothy Dever and Mark Gosik opened Timothy’s in 2011 after the closing of the Courtyard Inn and adjacent Pepperidge Farm outlet store freed up space in the Parkway Shopping Center.
The Brownfields at 611 E. Nields St.
This summer Borough Council voted unanimously to grant final land development approval to the construction of two warehouses on 27 acres at 611 E. Nields St. The brownfield site was once home to a Wyeth pharmaceutical plant. Now it will likely be a distribution center. The two buildings total 523,653 sq. ft. making it the largest building project in the Borough.
Sam’s Pizza Island
The longstanding Hannum bar/pizzeria closed in May. Known for its adult slushies, malt beverages, and extended hours, Sam’s definitely had a following.
“Growing up in the 80s on Washington St my pop would go to Sam’s on a Friday night and get a couple of pies and a couple of six packs. Sad to see you go but thankful for the over 40 years of serving the people,” one resident shared on Facebook.
AAA – West Chester Branch
A Greater West Chester Chamber of Commerce member since 1979, the American Automobile Association Gay Street location closed its doors for good this spring. Downingtown is now the nearest location for TripTiks and other retail services.
Let’s Roll
This year it was also goodbye to the short-lived eggroll concept shop, Let’s Roll in the Parkway Shopping Center. In its place AJ Pizza opened, but it seems they too will need to close their doors – or at least move them.
Faunbrook Bed and Breakfast
Faunbrook Bed and Breakfast was sold at a sheriff’s auction in February. Fortunately for fans of West Chester history, the home, originally owned by West Chester notable Smedley Darlington, was purchased by Stephanie and Matt Olenik, owners of the Bookhouse Hotel in Kennett Square. The couple announced earlier this year that they would renovate and rename the Victorian manor. Locals got their first look at “Bookhouse at Faunbrook” in Nov. when Stephanie and Matt hosted their first annual Darlington Book Ball.
Goodbye, 2024. All things considered, you weren’t too bad.
Did I miss anything? Let me know at cara@hellowestchesterpa.com
Originally published on Jan. 3, 2025
This story was part of a longer West Chester newsletter featuring all the news and events of the week. Curious what else is going on? Subscribe now to get the full story. New issues come out on Fridays!