I sent a note to the owners of 5th Earl yesterday after someone inquired about the status of rebuilding and reopening the space.

Last night I received a note back from 5th Earl co-owner Brian Bressler informing me that after months of waiting, they had terminated their lease with the landlord of the burned space and would not be reopening there in the future.  To put it modestly, it seems there was a major falling out between parties.

Brian said that he has no immediate plans of reopening elsewhere, as they “are still muddling thru the last portion of our insurance claim, to see where we end up.”

I wish them the best, and am optimistic that one day they can do another great rehab around town and start serving up those great sandwiches again.

Lyn evokes Andisheh and elaborates on The Decatur Minute on the news shared by KL in an earlier comment that Trackside and 5th Earl demolition will begin this evening.

Don’t Panic!  A portion of the front wall of Trackside and Fifth Earl will be demolished this evening.  This work is necessary because the fire earlier this year destroyed critical structural components and a segment of the front wall had pulled away from the building and was collapsing.  This retail strip is made up of several individual buildings which were cobbled together over time into a small retail center.  So, while Trackside and Fifth Earl appeared to be in two buildings, they actually occupied at least three individual buildings that had been joined together and then subdivided over the years.  The damaged wall section being demolished includes the far right side of Trackside and the left section of Fifth Earl.  The eastern-most lane of College Avenue adjacent to the building will be closed to traffic from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. as the demolition work is completed.  Plans are still underway to restore the building and reopen the businesses.  The demolition work marks the first step in the reconstruction.

Andisheh's Trackside Photo

SeniorScottie writes in with hopeful news about Trackside…

My roommate was walking by [Trackside] today, saw Jonathan and some of the others packing some stuff into storage, and asked what was up. Apparently, they got the insurance money (finally), are salvaging everything they can, and someone is going to come look at it so they can start to rebuild at the same location. No idea what the timeline is but I’m super exited.

Very good news!  I assume this will be a complete rebuild?

And before someone asks, I’ve heard nary a word about 5th Earl.