The Greene Turtle sports bar along York Road in Towson has plans to close following a rough start and recent complaints from neighboring businesses.
The sports bar has also seen its liquor license targeted, with the Greene Turtle receiving a penalty from the Baltimore County Liquor Board that forbids them from serving alcohol on Thursdays in October, according to Geo Concepcion, the Greene Turtle’s turnaround CEO.
Local officials have directed additional police resources to Towson on so-called “Thirsty Thursdays,” when bar promotions tend to draw large crowds. County Council Chair Mike Ertel, County Executive Kathy Klausmeier and Police Chief Robert McCullough have met with business owners to discuss how to manage the flow of patrons safely on busy nights.
“Has there been more intensity there, and has it been more busy? Definitely,” Geo Concepcion, the Greene Turtle’s turnaround CEO, said “But the reality is, that will continue whether we operate or not.”
In an interview with The Baltimore Sun Tuesday, Concepcion noted that there has been some animosity between the Towson Greene Turtle and its neighbors over what he described as “loitering” — specifically on Thursdays. He said that competitors and neighbors “are not appreciating that a shift has occurred and … that we were pivoting in a way that was going to give us a chance at survival.”
Though they struggled from the beginning, Concepcion said the company had “high hopes” that the Towson location, which opened in September 2022, would be a success, but noted that the Towson market didn’t bounce back to pre-COVID-19 figures. The daytime lunch scene didn’t recover and the sportsbook that they opened withdrew, he said.
“It was supposed to be one of the most important projects in our company’s history,” Concepcion said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun on Tuesday. “It was the most expensive Greene Turtle ever built.”
The Greene Turtle has 19 locations, including in Tampa, Florida.
The company recently closed another of its locations in Westminster. Concepcion said the lease there was “very expensive,” but it’s ultimately coincidental that both locations are being axed, according to Concepcion.
However, a return to Towson seems unlikely.
“It wouldn’t be feasible to make another investment after what we will lose on this one in that marketplace,” Concepcion said.
Have a news tip? Contact Hannah Gaskill at hgaskill@baltsun.com.