TGI Fridays closes in Boardman

Staff report

BOARDMAN

After serving the area for more than two decades, a casual-dining restaurant shut down business earlier this week.

TGI Fridays, 7165 Tiffany Blvd., closed its operations Monday, said Mike Fuhrman, vice president of operations for the restaurant.

The franchise restaurant employed 70 workers, who were offered a severance package or employment at TGI Fridays locations in the Pittsburgh area.

Fuhrman said it potentially could reopen at another location in the future.

“We’re always looking for great locations,” he said. “Unfortunately, we’ll be gone for now.”

The restaurant was among the first tenants in the area, said Bill Kutlick, a broker for Kutlick Realty, which represents the property’s landowners.

“[TGI] Fridays was a great tenant,” he said. “They just elected to not change with the times.”

Kutlick said there are more casual-dining options in the local area than there were 20 years ago, which brought in more competition for the restaurant.

“We wanted them to remodel,” he said. “It did need a renovation.”

The property has plenty of parking and a visible location, Kutlick added. The restaurant is located within the plaza close to Interstate 680 along with other eateries such as Red Lobster and the Mocha House.

Kutlick said the realty agency is in negotiations with other national chain restaurants to replace TGI Fridays, and that it won’t be long until it announces a new tenant.

The closest TGI Fridays from the Youngstown area is in New Castle, Pa.