Citing financial pressures that have caused a wave of closures of small breweries across the nation, a Five Points craft beer establishment has announced it is closing.
In a Facebook post, Alewife Craft Beer Bottle Shop and Tasting Room said it had decided not to renew its lease at 1035 Park St. as the 10-year lease soon comes to an end.
“This is a decision we have been agonizing over for the past few months and it truly hurts us to make it,” the post read.
Factors behind the decision included changes in the craft brew industry, which have affected establishments across the U.S. and in Jacksonville. Those include inflation, spiking costs of raw materials, increased competition and shifts in consumer spending that have resulted in hundreds of closures of American breweries in recent years.
In Jacksonville, breweries that have closed over the past two years include Tabula Rasa Brewing in the Rail Yard District, Pinglehead Brewing Co. in Orange Park, Lemonstreet Brewing Co., also in the Rail Yard District, and Hyperion Brewing Co. in Springfield.
Other breweries and brewpubs have opened in Jacksonville during that time, including Voodoo Brewing Co. in San Marco, Jekyll Brewing in Jacksonville Beach and Grace Note Brewing in October.
Alewife also cited changes in Five Points as a factor in its decision to close, saying “we don’t have the energy or resources it would take to make this space successful enough to support what the current market rate demands.”
“We have the opportunity to walk away on our terms, with time to say goodbye and celebrate everything that Alewife has been to us. So, we’re taking it,” the post read.
The post said the business would be hosting events through October before closing. A closing date has not been set.
Jacksonville City Council member Jimmy Peluso, whose District 7 includes Five Points, reposted the closure announcement, noting that he held his election victory party at the establishment. He commended Alewife cofounders Kelly Pickard and Jamie Burket for “helping make our community feel special & focused on small business.”