Showtime Lounge Owner says Previous Tenant, Barbershop, “Not Forced Out” in Bloomingdale

113 Rhode Island Ave, NW

On Monday we spoke about the Showtime Lounge coming to 113 Rhode Island Ave, NW in Bloomingdale. At the time one commenter, Colonel K, wrote:

“So one of the best (black) barbershops in the area was closed to make way for a pub for white hipster yuppies. Cheers.”

After I stopped by one of the owners followed up in an email wishing to clarify the situation:

“I noticed in the comments sections that some people were concerned about the predominately African-American frequented barbershop being muscled out to make way for a “gentrified” bar. I’d like to make sure people know that we had nothing to do with the closing of the salon. I was only able to get the space because I’ve lived upstairs from the Showtime for the last five years and got to know the barbers well, so I was able to jump on the opportunity once it was clear that they were closing. They had to close because the owner, who didn’t work there and only rented out the barber chairs, hadn’t paid her rent in months and was getting sued for back rent. So basically, the place was closing no matter what. If anyone would like to visit Ben or Sean or any of the barbers that are no longer there, we’ve posted where they’re working now on the outside of the building.”